Women under the bus – Roe is finished

a) STATE OPT-OUT OF ABORTION COVERAGE.– ”(1) IN GENERAL.–A State may elect to prohibit abortion coverage in qualified health plans offered through an Exchange in such State if such State enacts a law to provide for such prohibition.

In other words, states may override women’s right to chose. Bye Roe!

I was worried when I read about Boxer meeting with Nelson. Thanks Obama!

At this point, on the TPM news, only one comment notes what happened

. The rest are woo-hoo-ing

Just as I predicted a week ago

“I’m more interested in getting it right than getting home as quickly as everyone would like to,” he said.

So, for now, I’ll have to hope that the other hurdles will be front and center,

or a bunch of Senators would be stepping on all of us in their rush to the exit

For nostalgia sake: “the vote that saved the Democratic party”

On Tuesday afternoon, Senate Democrats decided not to sell out women, even if doing so would make passing health-care reform easier. By defeating the Nelson amendment, they finally demonstrated some respect for the feminists who are a crucial part of the Democratic Party. The fact is, the old, purely class-based New Deal coalition isn’t feasible in the 21st century. Women’s rights can no longer be blithely traded away at the bargaining table.

Good times, good times…

update

From TNR the happy news:

Nelson is in. Pro-choice Dems are cool with it. The caucus is jubilant.

and then the explanation

The abortion compromise seems to allow states the power to prohibit abortion coverage within the new insurance exchanges. In other words, it sounds like giving each state the right to enact its own version of the Stupak amendment that the House bill would apply nationally.

And, from the B0bots, Roe died with cheers!

CSPAN just reported lots of cheers coming from the room where the Democrats are meeting

Details at 10:45 EST.

Barbara Boxer has the temerity to say “

“And we said we would stop Stupak — which we did.

Update

NYT uses the verb “clinch” (as in “clinching the primaries) which we know is always bad news

Mr. Reid’s amendment includes major restrictions on abortion that were intended to win support for the bill from Mr. Nelson. Under Mr. Reid’s proposal, health insurance plans are not required or forbidden to cover abortion services, but there is a major exemption that would give states power to prohibit abortion coverage in the insurance markets, or exchanges, where most health plans would be sold.

oh, and special dough for Nebraska too.

Only principled woman? GOP Olympia Snowe

Senator Olympia J. Snowe, a Maine Republican who had been considered a possible Democratic ally, said she would oppose the measure, saying it was being rushed through.

Another entertaining upcome: GOP is unhappy with Nelson caving in. According to Tapper entry on facebook they say

..He had a chance to be a hero for taxpayers and the unborn and instead it turns out he’s nothing but a huckster whose vote was for sale”

Update 2 – the promise that it won’t be undone

As I read of dreams of signature statements and reconciliation to undo Nelson’s turd, Ezra Klein makes it clear

Nelson also secured a promise that his compromises would not be undone. He has been guaranteed “a limited conference between the Senate and the House.” That is to say, the bill will not change much when the House gets a crack at it.

Update 3

When I got the news, I e-mailed NOW. Terry O’Neal didn’t disappoint

“The so-called health care reform bill now before the Senate, with the addition of Majority Leader Harry Reid’s Manager’s Amendment, amounts to a health insurance bill for half the population and a sweeping anti-abortion law for the rest of us,” NOW President Terry O’Neill said in a statement.

“We call on all senators who consider themselves friends of women’s rights to reject the Manager’s Amendment, and if it remains, to defeat this cruelly over-compromised legislation,” O’Neill added.”