By failing to take a strong line, the Democrats allowed the GOP to dominate the healthcare debate all summer. Senate Majority Leader Reid wasted weeks trying to enlist the GOP in a compromise, despite clear signs that Republican leaders were only interested in sabotaging reform. Obama didn’t really take the reins of the debate until his address to Congress on Sept. 9.

Consequently, reform that Congress might have passed by Labor Day may not happen for months. Reid still isn’t guaranteeing that healthcare reform will pass this year, saying only that there’s “a very good chance” it will happen. Is this how a leader with a commanding majority should talk?

Interestingly, the GOP noise machine that has so unnerved the Democrats has done nothing to shake the public’s desire for reform. It has merely sapped confidence in the Democrats’ ability to deliver the goods…

Obama seemed to signal a new hard line during his Sept. 9 healthcare speech, when he threatened to “call out” anyone who misrepresented his plan. Yet he hasn’t exactly jumped into the fray.