Transcript of The Situation Room aired February 22, 2010 - 17:00 ET
Is the president really sincere -- serious about trying to get some Republican cooperation right now on -- on health care, because this is -- this is do or die right now?
DAVID GERGEN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST, FORMER PRESIDENTIAL ADVISER: It is. This is a -- this is -- we're down to the final -- the final end game here now, Wolf.
And in talking to people at the White House, I -- I found that there are basically two camps there. There's one camp that feels very strongly that after this Thursday's summit, he should move quickly to -- with this big reconciliation process, a comprehensive health care bill that's so controversial, get Democrats only to vote for it and shove it on through.
There is another group that hopes that from these conversations on Thursday, there will be some Republican proposals that will be put on the table and the president, if he decides to, could go a different way, and that is, to go with a watered down bill that would include some of the Republican proposals, some of his own Democratic proposals and that that bill would then attract bipartisan support and be passed in the next few weeks.
So they haven't quite decided. I think they're going to see what they can get out of this. Clearly, they're opening through this summit -- this is a -- it's an interesting ploy -- but to see if they can't move the needle on public opinion.
BLITZER: Yes. For this bill, it's unlikely they could get the 60 votes to break a filibuster -- Gloria, they may not even be able to get 51 votes on this so-called reconciliation procedure.
What are you hearing, Gloria, from your sources?
GLORIA BORGER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, I -- I was talking to folks at the White House today who said, look, they had no other choice than to put something out there today. They've been working with Senator Reid's office, Nancy Pelosi's office to try and get some kind of agreement among the Democratic leaders about what they can actually get out of the Democratic side.
They felt very strongly that they needed to go to this summit with something that the Democrats could agree on. And Nancy Pelosi right now has got a big job trying to convince her more liberal House Democratic Caucus to go along with this measures, which is largely a Senate measure.
But the -- the adviser that I spoke with at the White House said this to me today. The source said everybody feels like their back is to the wall now on this, we have no other choice but to get this done. And in the meeting that we're going to cover on Thursday, I'm told the president is going to refer to this as a "starting document" so that he can invite Republicans to join in and change the legislation if they -- if they desire, which they will.
BLITZER: Dave -- David, you're smiling when she says "starting document."
Why are you smiling?
(LAUGHTER)
GERGEN: Well, because it's not a starting document. It's the -- it's -- they're putting it forward as the final -- as -- as the bill itself and you guys can come and make a few amendments. And the Republicans are saying, nonsense, you know, if you're serious about this, let's start over. Scrap that and let's start over and have a real bipartisan...
BORGER: But...
GERGEN: -- debate. And...
BORGER: But at the White House, they felt they could -- they couldn't do that, I mean right, David?
GERGEN: Well, that's right.
BORGER: I mean they...
GERGEN: But that's why this...
BORGER: -- they felt that they couldn't start all over again, given the fact they'd asked Democrats to take all these tough votes over the last nine months.
GERGEN: That's why this -- we're not going to emerge with any sort of grand bipartisan solution coming out of this Thursday.
BORGER: Right.
GERGEN: It may move the ball and change things.
But to go back to Gloria, Wolf, I -- I think the president may have some trouble getting this through the House if he goes to the reconciliation process.
BORGER: Right.
GERGEN: Rounding up the votes in the House is not going to be an easy task.
BLITZER: Yes, because they barely got it passed the last time in the House. They went two or three votes. And they've lost a few Democrats since (ph) then for retirement or illness or whatever death. We'll see what happens. Guys, you'll be part of the coverage on Thursday. We'll watch this historic meeting at Blair House, across the street from the White House. This health care summit will be fascinating.