Health Care. The fight for the Public Option

This morning Think Progress' Faiz Shakir's posted about how Rahm Emanuel Signals White House Is Willing To Compromise On Public Plan. Rahm has never been one of my favorite politicians, and he's from my State and a Democrat. They try to call him a king maker but all I've seen from Rahm is obstructionism and back room deals for power and money. About the issue of Health Care, I wish he would just shut up. He's going against the wishes of Obama. Here's part of Faiz's post:

The Wall Street Journal reports that White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel is now lending Baucus his support for the public plan “trigger”:

Mr. Emanuel said one of several ways to meet President Barack Obama’s goals is a mechanism under which a public plan is introduced only if the marketplace fails to provide sufficient competition on its own. He noted that congressional Republicans crafted a similar trigger mechanism when they created a prescription-drug benefit for Medicare in 2003. In that case, private competition has been judged sufficient and the public option has never gone into effect. […]

On Monday, Mr. Emanuel said the trigger mechanism would also accomplish the White House’s goals. Under this scenario, a public plan would kick in under certain circumstances when competition was judged to be lacking. Exactly what circumstances would trigger the option would have to be worked out.

But in the same post, even though Emanuel said: "one of several ways to meet President Barack Obama’s goals is a mechanism under which a public plan is introduced only if the marketplace fails to provide sufficient competition on its own", there is an unlinked update of what Obama is saying:

President Obama issued a statement this morning, reiterating his support for a public plan:

I am pleased by the progress we're making on health care reform and still believe, as I've said before, that one of the best ways to bring down costs, provide more choices, and assure quality is a public option that will force the insurance companies to compete and keep them honest. I look forward to a final product that achieves these very important goals.

I think Obama needs to tell Rahm to keep his mouth shut on this issue and quit talking for Obama. And I also think Obama has to talk to his Senate buddies and tell them what he wants and that he will accept only a bill that has a Public Plan in it.
A majority of the American people really want this public plan.

What I can't understand is that Obama has a Web Site for people to post the problems they've had with Private Insurance. What is he going to do with it and when is he going to use it?

Update: Huffington's Sam Stein has a post saying: President Tries To Put Out Fire From Emanuel's Health Care Remarks

"Rahm's problem with this is he is on the more conservative end of the Democratic Party and he is a very political guy," the source added. "He is working for a way out without a bloody fight. The problem is he doesn't mind taking that fight to the left. And what I worry could happen is the left will just quit."

Certainly Emanuel's remarks to the Journal presented a pill too big to swallow for many Democrats. "It is actually the most ludicrous of the compromises on the table," explained one activist. "It says we should wait until the health care crisis gets worse before it gets better."

And in the hours after the interview was published, the White House clearly sensed concern bubbling. Moving with haste, aides put out a statement from the president before any major firestorm erupted.