The Washington Post notes the Obama administration, "hoping to boost its health-care reform effort with financial concessions from the hospital and pharmaceutical industries, is instead confronting deep dissension on several fronts within Democratic ranks and possible defections among key constituencies."
"No single development appeared likely to kill Obama's signature domestic agenda item, but the relentless barrage of challenges that seemed to hit hourly served to demonstrate why no president since Lyndon B. Johnson has been able to enact large-scale health legislation."
Nonetheless, the Huffington Post reports former President Clinton predicted that President Obama "will ultimately succeed where he failed" because of three distinct reasons.
Said Clinton: "The filibuster won't be an option, the small business community won't be as against any plan we got now, and frankly the economy is in such a mess that you've got a little more budget flexibility."
Mike Allen: "It's important for everybody to step back and look at how far and how fast we have gone here. This thing has gone farther and faster than any health reform, ever... There's always drama on the Hill -- that's what happens. Our eyes are on the concrete steps of the legislative process."
Senate Finance Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT) "continued working with Republicans on a bipartisan health care bill Wednesday," Roll Call reports, "despite an urgent warning from Senate Democratic leaders that the potential cost of wooing GOP votes could have a devastating effect on Democratic support for the measure."
And CQ Politics notes Reid promised "not to leave Republicans out while shaping the health care bill."
