Listening to the various news outlets this week, you’d think that because of the results in the special election in Massachussetts, the Democratic party is in complete disarray and health care reform is dead in the water, because <gasp> they’ve only got a fifty-nine seat majority* in the Senate rather than the sixty they had before.

It doesn’t have to be that way. There’s a simple way to get a health care bill passed, almost immediately, and get on with the people’s business of fixing all the other problems out there. The congressional leadership just has to stand up and take action to do it.

Here’s how it goes down: The House adopts the Senate bill as it stands, Speaker Pelosi whips her caucus into line (to be fair, no easy feat, but certainly possible) to pass it, and sends it to the President’s desk, ideally by Monday morning. If the House accepts the Senate bill as it was passed, there’s no need for another Senate vote.

If this happens, the President can sign this thing early next week (despite all the hemming and hawing he’s been doing about bipartisanship and waiting for Senator Centerfold** or whatever lately, if he gets a bill, it’s not like he’s not going to sign it!), and then, on Wednesday night he can lead off with something like this:

Madam Speaker, Mr. Vice President, Members of Congress, My Fellow Americans:

We’ve faced a lot of hardship over the last year, and we have a long way to go to before we’re through, but I come her today to tell you why the state of our union is strenghthening and improving mightily, thanks to the tireless efforts of so many Americans.

Just this week, I signed into law a comprehensive Health Care Reform bill which will improve the lives of millions of Americans by ensuring access to affordable, quality health care. It’s an important first step in the process of reforming the health care system in this country, and in the months and years ahead, look forward to working with all of you to further improve our nation’s means of providing for the general welfare of all it’s citizens…

not exactly up to Seaborn-Ziegler standard, but you get the idea…

Now, The Senate bill’s not at all perfect; I can understand some of the more liberal Representatives having reservations. I have reservations about the bill. But for all its’ problems, it does a lot of good by implementing regulations to prevent abuse of patients and health care providers by the insurance industry, and while it’s not my ideal choice, the insurance exchange idea has potential. As long as it’s not considered a one-time solution, but rather the first of many stages of reform, it’ll do a lot of good. It gives us something to build on.

As many have said, the biggest thing about this whole debate is to plant the idea in people’s heads that our system could use an upgrade. I think that message has gotten through. Most Republicans aren’t justifying their opposition by saying "No Reform", they’re acknowledging that the system needs fixed, but want to "take the time to do it right."

So, lets get the ball rolling on getting it right. Pass the Senate bill ASAP, but then take the time to adjust and expand the bill into something that works better for everyone. There’s no need to put the "perfect" solution in place right away; it’s too big a problem for that. Those striving for perfection are either naive, or simply trying to put off doing anything.

Like the rest of the American experience, this is going to be an ongoing experiment. I say we get started.

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* – The asterisk there is to note that there are two Senators who aren’t Democrats or Republicans, and both nominally caucus with the Democrats, although Lieberman can’t really be counted for any vote that matters. Given the fact that the 60 vote cloture thing is right out either way at this point, there’s not reason at all to keep stringing Lieberman along with committee chairs, only to have him bail on the caucus at least opportune moment.

** – to be fair, I don’t know much about Senator-Elect Scott Brown, other than the Cosmo Centerfold thing, and that he’s a Republican (from Massachussetts, which means he might possibly be more liberal than at least one of my Democratic senators). There’s nothing wrong with the fact that he was a Cosmo centerfold, by the way, I just thought it was novel and entertaining. I’m sure it has no bearing on the kind of job he’ll do. I do wonder what his feelings on objectification of people (men or women, but particularly women) as “sex objects” are, based on his experience at being one back in the 80s?