Public option plan appears to crack

Racing to regain control of the health care debate, two top administration officials signaled yesterday that the White House may be willing to jettison a controversial government-run insurance plan favored by liberals.

As President Obama finishes a western swing intended to bolster support for his signature policy initiative, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius opened the door to a compromise on a public option, saying that it was "not the essential element" of comprehensive reform. White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said on CBS's Face the Nation that the president "will be satisfied" if the private insurance market has "choice and competition."

Yet even as the Obama team hinted that it could accept concessions that moderate Democrats are seeking, one of the leaders of that faction raised another hurdle for the administration, warning that Senate Finance Committee negotiators may not meet the president's Sept. 15 deadline for producing a bill.

"We will be ready when we are ready," Sen. Kent Conrad, a Democrat from North Dakota, said on Fox News Sunday. "We will not be bound by any deadline."

The on-air deliberations played out against the backdrop of an intense and expensive battle on the ground, with an array of health care activists using this month to lobby lawmakers in their home states and districts.

"Everybody on the left and the right is very frustrated with the health debate," said Rep. Jim Cooper, a Democrat from Tennessee. He said he has heard anxious stories from constituents who have lost jobs, seen a relative receive poor treatment in a hospital, watched retirement accounts evaporate and fretted about gun rights.

"I have heard every possible reason for anger," he said in an interview. "The common target is Congress."

Declining poll numbers, testy town hall meetings and mounting frustration among his allies sent Obama into campaign mode over the weekend. He staged his own forums and penned an opinion piece published yesterday in the New York Times.

"In the coming weeks, the cynics and the naysayers will continue to exploit fear and concerns for political gain," he wrote. "But for all the scare tactics out there, what's truly scary - truly risky - is the prospect of doing nothing."

Andrew Stern, head of the Service Employees International Union, said "Obama's gaining ground" after several sluggish weeks. But he disputed Conrad's contention that Senate negotiators need additional time to draft a bill.

"Deliberation is fine, but at some point it's just delaying," he said in an interview. "A longer wait to make the hard choices on health care is not increasing the odds of success."