Biden: Health care bill may be in by Thanksgiving

[steven johnson]

A CNN snap poll of people interviewed before and after Obama's healthcare speech indicated that the president shifted public opinion in favor of his healthcare bill. After the speech, two-thirds said they supported Obama's health care proposals, compared with 53 percent in a survey days ago. About one in seven speech-watchers changed their minds on his proposal.
Moderate Democratic leglators responded favorably. Since the blue dogs and their constituents are the swing vote, Biden may be close in his prediction of a bill by Thanksgiving.

Vice President Joe Biden asserted Thursday that a health care bill will be done by Thanksgiving because President Barack Obama has "re-centered debate" and there's an emerging bipartisan consensus for change despite fights over details like the government-run option.

"I think the most important thing he did, he also debunked a lot of the myths out there, the idea of death panels, that we were going to insure undocumented aliens," said Biden, touring the morning network news shows a day after Obama delivered what he hopes was a game-changing appeal to a joint session of Congress.
Obama went to Capitol Hill determined to sweep away a summer of gridlock on his top domestic priority, and his vice president argued that he'd accomplished just that in the nationally broadcast, prime-time address.

"I believe we will have a bill," Biden said. "I've been in the Congress for a very long time, eight presidents. I believe we will have a bill before Thanksgiving."

"If the details live up to the quality of the speech, then it's a good plan," said Rep. Jim Cooper, D-Tenn., one of the fiscally conservative "Blue Dog" Democrats.

Biden: Health care bill may be in by Thanksgiving