Ben Nelson Against Arbitrary Health Care Deadline

Sen. Ben Nelson issued a statement against President Barack Obama's arbitrary deadline for health care reform. Nelson has gone on the record against the public health care option.

Nelson's problem, he told CQ, is that the public plan would be too attractive and would hurt the private insurance plans. "At the end of the day, the public plan wins the game," Nelson said. Including a public option in a health plan, he said, was a "deal breaker."

Two of Nelson's biggest campaign contributors are the insurance and health care industies.

Eli Lilly & Co.- $27,250

UnitedHealth Group Inc. - $25,000

American Optometric Association - $25,000

Schering-Plough Corp. - $25,000 American Medical Association -$24,500

Amgen Inc. - $24,250

Pfizer Inc. - $22,600

American Dental Association - $22,000

American Physical Therapy Association - $21,500

GlaxoSmithKline - $21,285

American Health Care Association - $21,250

American Hospital Association - $20,000

Blue Cross/Blue Shield has been a major contributor to Nelson. The Senator is doing the bidding of lobbyists. He backed off threatening to filibuster. The netroots campaign against Nelson was successful.

Nelson is giving a lot of sound and fury. He isn't going to lift a finger for or against the Senate bill. One must have principle, in order to have a spine. Nelson has neither.