Yesterday, the Senate Finance Committee voted down the public option amendments introduced by Senators Rockefeller and Schumer. Sen. Schumer's public option amendment picked up moderate Democratic votes by Sen. Carper (D-DE) and Sen. Nelson (D-FL) - both of whom received hundreds of phone calls from people across the country in support of a public option.

The media is desperate for a story here - they're sniffing around for a new angle. Back in August, Republican opponents were declaring the public option dead. Health care reform, itself, seemed increasingly unlikely of passage. Well, no more. The public option has momentum, and despite dire predictions from the right, it's on the move. Thanks to your phone calls yesterday, we picked up two additional votes in the Senate's most conservative committee.

Sen. Schumer appeared on MSNBC's Hardball yesterday to discuss the vote:

Sen. Schumer is clear: if we keep this up, we are going to see a public option.Your phone calls gave voice to the two-thirds of Americans who support the public option. And because of your calls, we're winning.

Unfortunately, some Senators didn't listen. While we expected this move from the Republican faction, we are disappointed by some of the Democratic votes. Statements in support of increased competition and choice for American consumers directly conflict with votes against the Schumer amendment. Still, the majority of Democrats voted in support of giving consumers the choice of a public plan. Thanks to Senators Rockefeller, Bingaman, Kerry, Wyden, Schumer, Stabenow, Cantwell, Nelson, Menendez and Carper, all of whom represented their constituents yesterday - not insurance company interests.

In the next couple months, each member of Congress will have the opportunity to vote for the public option. While the various health care bills make their way through Congress, we must continue relating our personal stories to Senate and Congressional staff, writing letters to our local newspapers, talking to our neighbors and demonstrating why Americans need an affordable, competitive choice when buying health insurance.

Update: Watch the video from the rally featuring Senators Schumer, Whitehouse, Menendez, Cardin, SEIU Executive VP Mary Kay Henry and Hispanic Federation President Lillian Rodriguez Lopez.

On the eve of an expected final vote to confirm Sonia Sotomayor, hundreds of the judge's supporters, SEIU members and partners within the progressive community gathered at Upper Senate Park on Capitol Hill to call for the confirmation of Judge Sotomayor to the Supreme Court.

SEIU Executive Vice President Mary Kay Henry joined Senators Cardin, Schumer, Whitehouse and Menendez and other community and civil rights leaders to voice support for Judge Sonia Sotomayor. "As the daughter of a nurse and a factory worker who instilled in her the value of hard work and giving back, she is a woman who has always earned her way to the top of the class and found ways to use her accomplishments to enhance the lives of others," said Henry.

Beyond Sotomayor's brilliance, her three-decade career in the law and her distinguished record, Judge Sotomayor's personal story of achievement has given her a rare insight into the lives of people who get up and go to work each day to make a better life for their families. She has proven to be a brilliant and fair-minded jurist who has consistently interpreted this country's labor laws in the manner in which they were intended. Henry detailed an example at today's rally:

"In the baseball strike of 1995, she recognized that the owners had forced the strike by engaging in unlawful conduct, and issued an injunction. She has enforced the rights of workers to be free of all types of discrimination at work, to be paid the wages and health benefits to which they are entitled. She recognized that workers have a right to a fair contract and has held employers accountable for needless delays that do nothing but hurt workers."

Read Mary Kay Henry's comments from the rally here. Photos on Flickr here -- stay tuned for video footage later tonight.

Leaders from the civil rights community issued the following statements at the rally after the jump.

Momentum is growing in Washington for comprehensive immigration reform. Just as the bipartisan Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) issued a sweeping report on the urgent need for comprehensive immigration reform, Senator Schumer announced yesterday that an immigration bill will be ready by Labor Day. "I think we'll have a good bill by Labor Day," said Schumer. "I think the fundamental building blocks are in place to do comprehensive immigration reform."

Read the full report by CFR's Immigration Policy Task Force--which includes SEIU Executive Vice President Eliseo Medina and former Governor of Florida Jeb Bush. "While it may not be a sprint to the finish, after years of delay, broken promises and political logjams, the urgency is greater than ever to make real progress," said Medina. Check out coverage of this encouraging news in the AP, Washington Post and Daily Kos.

Sitting among the insurance executives, business leaders, and Washington lobbyists in the audience of yesterday's roundtable on health care reform were a handful of frontline caregivers from SEIU. They came from across the country to be on Capitol Hill yesterday, and they served as a powerful reminder of the people the debate over health care reform is really about - patients and their caregivers.

Two SEIU Healthcare leaders - Dr. L. Toni Lewis, MD and Cathy Stoddart, RN - took notes on their time in Washington and offered to share their perspective as caregivers. For Dr. Lewis, the importance of yesterday's hearing set in before she even arrived on Capitol Hill:

On the way to the Senate, we were talking about health care reform - sharing our thoughts on how we KNOW it's happening this year because so many people are so committed to it. Our cab driver, Germaine, asks if he can share his story. He tells us that he is 64, works more than 12 hours a day and still can't afford health care - Germaine has diabetes, and the cost of his supplies, medications and follow up are overwhelming. Mind you, Germaine is not upset - he understands hard work and appreciates that - he is glad to tell us his story. Germaine believes that we are getting ready to get this done - so he gives us an encouraging smile as we leave the cab and enter the Senate building.

In the hearing, Cathy Stoddart was encouraged by many of the senators' serious commitment to fixing health care:

Senator Menendez rocks! He did not mince words, which I think the American public are tired of. He asked straightforward questions and focused on the fact that the time is now - and that no one assembled was against reforming health care.

Senator Schumer was right on, too. He talked about the playing field for a public health insurance option vs. present private insurance plans. He talked about the lack of trust Americans have in private insurance companies and how they have been the gatekeepers of access to care; they are, in essence, rationing care for my low and middle income patients.

The discussion left Dr. Lewis excited that we're finally talking about true health care and not the "sick care" that our current system promotes:

I loved the fact that there was a discussion not only on coverage, but also on oral health, home care, end of life care, prevention and wellness, and primary care. We're actually talking about comprehensive coverage!

Both Toni and Cathy agreed that the people who need to be leading the movement to fix health care aren't the ones in Washington - it's the caregivers at the bedside. Cathy summed it up well:

There is something about returning someone to health so that they, too, can contribute to a better society. It feels good; it's a legacy to be proud of. It is what people deserve and it is why I become a nurse. We have a big role to play in this movement. We've all got to put our hand in and steer it in the right direction.

Look out Washington; there's a new sheriff in town.

The Journal News is reporting that Senator Max Baucus has added another link to the united front that will be pushing health care reform through Washington this year:

[Senator Charles] Schumer said this week he's been asked by Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus to serve as the panel's point man supporting the administration on the issue [of a public health insurance option].

"If competition works, why not have a public entity?" said Schumer, a Democrat and New York's senior senator.

Multiple polls have confirmed that the vast majority of Americans support a public health insurance option as part of the plan to fix health care. The benefits to consumers would be substantial:

· Patients would see the exact same doctors for the exact same procedures, but at a much lower cost. By introducing a competing plan to the health care market - as well as the millions of new consumers who would be able to afford coverage for the first time - the public health insurance option would drop costs across the board almost immediately.

· Americans with pre-existing conditions would finally have access to affordable coverage. For decades, one serious illness or chronic condition has sentenced Americans to a lifetime without health insurance. Introducing a public health insurance option into the market would allow those with pre-existing conditions to buy good coverage at a price they could afford. Studies have shown that the cost of insuring those "high risk" individuals would be offset by the millions of young, healthy Americans also purchasing health insurance for the first time. It's the same principle that allows big corporations to pool their insurance risk together and pay much less per employee than their small business counterparts.

· We'd have more choices for health care - not less. Lots of anti-reform groups like to scare Americans into believing that a public health insurance option amounts to a government take over of the health care system. They tell you that, if you have good health care, you're going to lose it. Nothing could be further from the truth. Under the new plan, if you have health insurance that you like - you keep it. Period. The only change you'll see is lower premiums as the increased competition drives down costs for all consumers.

So, if a public health insurance option is a win-win-win for consumers, why is it still controversial on Capitol Hill? The answer, not surprisingly, is money. There's big money to be made in a system that overcharges for health care. And that money is paying for lobbyists that are working around the clock to protect the status quo.

That's where Senator Schumer comes in. During the coming months, as the plans for health care reform unfold, his job is to make sure Congress is looking out for patients and not profits by including a public health insurance option into the mix. Backing him up will be President Obama and the soon-to-be-Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius. And, of course, all of us.

A plan that creates more competition, lower costs, and better care - it's so simple and straightforward, only in Washington could it be controversial.