Monday's Starting Lineup

Good Monday morning. How about Bode Miller redeeming himself after falling so short in Torino? Going into week 2 of the Olympics, the U.S. has to be pleased with its lead in the medal count.

Here's today's Starting Lineup, previewing the people who will make headlines today:

PRES. OBAMA: Days before Obama meets with Congressional leaders at Blair House for the C-SPAN summit, the WH will unveil their version of a health care reform package this morning at 10 a.m. The package is expected to include new government checks on excessive rate hikes by insurance companies, a provision that had not existed in either the House or Senate versions of the bill. It follows a big rate hike by a CA insurer which sparked outrage when it was announced several weeks ago.

Though health care has been the albatross Dems have struggled against over the last 6 months -- polling in MA showed Sen. Scott Brown (R) got a boost after the Christmas Eve vote to move legislation forward -- the party is doubling down on their efforts to pass something. Sen. Michael Bennet (D-CO) has led the charge to breathe new life into the public option, and Senate Maj. Leader Harry Reid has signaled he backs the effort.

Obama's new version of health care overhaul is a recognition that the WH played too much of a hands-off game over the past year. After Bill Clinton's admin micromanaged the health care process to ill effect, Obama's team over-learned the lesson and gave Congress too much power, and too little guidance. This new effort to strike the right balance between guidance and recognition of Congress's powers could be Obama's last attempt to move reform forward in a meaningful way.

LIBERALS: Obama's base has been as much of a thorn in his side as GOPers have been. They agitated for the public option, they find themselves at odds with more conservative factions of the Dem caucus and now they're questioning the wisdom of Dems' next big-ticket item, a $15B jobs package. The AFL-CIO, the NAACP and La Raza have warned Dems that Reid's version of a second stimulus isn't big enough to have an impact on the economy.

In fact, Reid's bill isn't as big as one that appeared to earn bipartisan support. An agreement between Sens. Max Baucus (D-MT) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA) would have spent $85B to provide a jolt to the economy. House Dems have proposed a $154B jobs package, while the outside coalition of groups is preparing its own package that would cost much more, The Hill reports.

No one knows the pressure liberals are putting on the rest of the party better than Bennet. Appointed to replace Interior Sec. Ken Salazar, Bennet faces a competitive Dem primary against ex-CO House Speaker Andrew Romanoff; Romanoff has backing from major CO unions, and he's forced Bennet to the left on the public option while avowing support for EFCA, derided by GOPers as "card check." A nasty Dem primary could give GOPers the chance to pick up another Dem-held Senate seat. Liberal angst at slow steps taken by the admin, and by some of its allies, could cost the party at the polls as much as the GOP's intra-party feuds will hurt them.

CONGRESSIONAL GOPERS: For all the bluff and bluster, let's get one thing clear: There's no chance House and Senate GOP leaders don't show up at Blair House on Thursday, no matter how much they complain that Obama's first draft of health care legislation is already on the WH website (and look for those statements to pour off Capitol Hill once the bill goes up this morning). THe event is not only great political theater -- and what true politician can say no to playing a role in good theater? -- it's also great politics for the GOP.

The GOP has little incentive to work with Dems on passing a bill, despite their protestations of impending bipartisanship. One thing both sides agree on: When a bill eventually does get passed, Dems will see their popularity ratings go up, and the party will be in better position to show voters what it has accomplished than it is now, when all they have to offer is warmed over excuses about an obstructionist minority (Has that argument ever worked?).

So the GOP is calling for a clean slate, a fresh start and a new beginning to health care discussions. The longer the debate drags on without an end product that can be evaluated and dissected, the better it is for the GOP.

The old saying is proving true once again: The 2 things no one wants to see being made are laws and sausage. The GOP is taking voters on an extended tour of the sausage-making factory, and Dems are the ones feeling queasy.