Nelson responds to ads

WASHINGTON – Sen. Ben Nelson has ordered up a dose of his own campaign-style television advertising in response to attacks by advocacy groups pushing him to back the creation of a new government health insurance plan.

Nelson has been skeptical of the “public option” plans supported by many of his fellow Democrats on Capitol Hill. Last month, he joined several other senators in calling for congressional leaders to take their time on health care legislation.

Lawmakers ultimately left Washington for their August recess without a floor vote on health care in either the House or the Senate.

A couple of groups that want the public option have criticized Nelson, saying he's slowing down the health care bill and the creation of a public option.

In his new ad, Nelson looks into the camera and says:

“You've probably been hearing a lot about health care reform and like too much stuff that comes out of Washington, it's hard to know what's fact and what's fiction, so I want you to hear my principles straight from me.”

Nelson continues speaking as the ad runs through a montage of scenes: Nelson talking to a woman in medical scrubs, Nelson pointing at X-rays and Nelson talking to people in a restaurant.

“First, any plan must keep spending under control, help our small businesses, improve care, control costs and most of all - the plan needs to work for Nebraska,” Nelson says in the ad. “I'm Ben Nelson and I approved this message because you can count on me to always put Nebraska first – always.”

The 30-second ad will run statewide over the next couple of weeks, funded by Nelson campaign money, said the senator's spokesman Jim Fagin.

Nelson is not up for re-election until November 2012. That a senator would buy so much air time more than three years away from an election indicates just how hot the health care debate has become.

Nelson wants to “calm the waters” by sharing his general principles with constituents, Fagin said.
“There's a lot of misinformation and the senator wants to clear up the confusion,” Fagin said.

Democracy for America and the Progressive Change Campaign Committee have been running ads in Nebraska that feature Ralston restaurant owner Mike Snider talking about how his insurance rates are going up by 42 percent.

Snider then says a public option would drive down those costs by providing private insurers with competition. Snider refers to Nelson as leading the charge to delay reform this summer.

Nelson has said he could not support the proposals now pending in Congress, but that he would like to see what kind of bill the Senate Finance Committee produces.

Top members of that panel have been engaged in bipartisan negotiations that could produce legislation with a lower price tag than the other proposals and either no public option at all, or some alternative.

Nelson has said that he is open to some form of a public option, as long as it does not undermine the insurance that most Americans already have.

That might include a system of co-ops or a public option that would be implemented only if the private insurance sector failed to meet certain goals.

At town hall meetings across the country, lawmakers have found overflow crowds and sometimes unruly protestors speaking out against Democrats' proposals. Moderate Senate Democrats, in particular, have been popular targets of the protestors.

Fagin said that Nelson is planning public events across the state during the current recess, but has not finalized a schedule. Constituents will have the opportunity at the events to ask Nelson questions, Fagin said.

He said Nelson is not worried about the intense scenes playing out at other senators' meetings and noted that people calling Nelson's office about the issue have been courteous.

“Hopefully they'll be as nice as people on the phone,” Fagin said of the audiences at Nelson's to-be-scheduled public meetings.

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