Health Debate Care Update: Explaining the Democratic Left to the White House

The leftwing of the Democratic Party has erupted in fury in reaction to President Barack Obama's apparent waffling over the proposal to create a government run health insurance scheme. White House denizens affect to be mystified by the backlash. As the Washington Post reports: 

"I don't understand why the left of the left has decided that this is their Waterloo," said a senior White House adviser, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. "We've gotten to this point where health care on the left is determined by the breadth of the public option. I don't understand how that has become the measure of whether what we achieve is health-care reform."

"It's a mystifying thing," he added.

Well, in this one instance, let me help the White House out: the creation of a government run health insurance scheme has always been seen by the leftwing as the thin edge of the wedge that would eventually lead to a complete government takeover (can you say, "single payer"?) of health care. Taking away the "public option" means that the leftwing dream of establishing a nationalized health care system is delayed yet again. Got it now?