Conservative Democrats Expect a Health Deal

By CARL HULSE
NYT

WASHINGTON — Like her colleagues, Representative Stephanie Herseth Sandlin, a South Dakota Democrat and leader of the fiscally conservative Blue Dog Coalition, has been weathering the summer of health care discontent.

There have been the angry constituents, the worried business leaders and even productive talks on what an acceptable health care overhaul should look like. Despite the clamor, Ms. Herseth Sandlin said she still believed that she — and perhaps a majority of the more than 50 Blue Dogs — could ultimately get behind a health care package if it was reasonable and represented a consensus Democratic view.

“I want to support necessary change,” she said. “But I don’t want to support radical change.”

Even after the tough town-hall-style meetings, unrelenting Republican assaults and a steady stream of questions from anxious voters, interviews with more than a dozen Blue Dogs and their top aides indicate that many of the lawmakers still believe approval of some form of health care plan is achievable and far preferable to not acting at all.

“I can’t tell you how comprehensive it will be, but I do believe something will get passed,” said Representative Michael Arcuri, a second-term Blue Dog Democrat from New York.

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