Reid Clinches Vote

With little time to spare, Majority Leader Harry Reid garnered the 60 votes he needed to move the Senate's health-care bill into debate. Arkansas Sen. Blanche Lincoln, a conservative Democrat who had long been on the fence, said she would side with her caucus just hours before the vote. Two other centrists holding out till the last minute were Louisiana Sen. Mary Landrieu and Nebraska Sen. Bill Nelson. While Saturday's vote was good news for Reid, it's not a guarantee that the bill itself will pass. Both Landrieu and Lincoln said they would not vote for a bill containing a public-insurance option, a more liberal measure that Democrats desperately want. Lincoln in particular faces a tough reelection campaign next year, and even mentioned the millions of dollars spent on advertising in her state, urging her to either vote for or against the bill, in her speech on the Senate floor.