From an L.A. Times “analysis” story printed in Tuesday’s Journal-Star about the potential elimination of a public option (emphasis mine):
Families USA Executive Director Ron Pollack, a leading consumer advocate who has been pushing a healthcare overhaul for decades, said his group had been distributing a memo touting the “10 Reasons to Support the Health Care Reform Bills.” A government plan was only one of them.
A government plan was only one of the 10 reasons to support the health care reform bills. What were they expecting? That if a public option were truly important, they would have listed it several times?