Senate Democrats meet with White House adviser to craft response to Republican criticism on health reform

Senate Democrats on Wednesday worked with senior White House adviser David Axelrod to craft a health care message focused on affordability and choice, the AP/Contra Costa Times reports (Werner, AP/Contra Costa Times, 5/13).

The meeting followed the release of a memo last week by Republican strategist Frank Luntz outlining how to criticize Democratic plans for health reform (Budoff Brown/McGrane, Politico, 5/13). Senate Majority Whip Richard Durbin (D-Ill.) said Luntz's memo was "an interesting catalyst for us" (AP/Contra Costa Times, 5/13).

Axelrod presented Democrats with polling data about what U.S. residents are seeking from a health care overhaul and discussed better word choices, such as "shared responsibility" rather than "mandates" for coverage requirements. According to CongressDaily, the meeting centered Democrats on a coordinated message that the U.S. health care system must be affordable and accessible and should be patient-focused (Edney/Condon, CongressDaily, 5/13).

Sen. Evan Bayh (D-Ind.) said that many Democrats felt "unease that we did not have a strategy" to answer the attacks coming from Republicans (Pear, New York Times, 5/14). Senate Finance Committee Chair Max Baucus (D-Mont.) said, "Everybody in the room had been a little nervous that, 'Gee, Democrats don't have their act together'" (CongressDaily, 5/13). However, Bayh said that "Axelrod came to reassure us that they do have a strategy" (New York Times, 5/14).

Durbin said, "This is an effort to coordinate our message so we present a health care reform effort the American people trust" (Armstrong, CQ Today, 5/13). According to Durbin, Axelrod emphasized that Democrats should continue with the campaign theme that the goal of an overhaul is to "fix what's broken in the system and preserve what's good" (Young, The Hill, 5/13).

Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) said, "We believe the public shares our views. But we don't want to be overwhelmed by either resources, messaging or boots on the ground." He added, "We won't make the mistake of 1993-94." According to the New York Times, a plan developed by the administration of former President Clinton "collapsed" in the face of Republican criticism (New York Times, 5/14).