For weeks, the punditocracy -- Chris Matthews and Jonathan Alter come immediately to mind -- have been saying liberals are foolish for insisting on the inclusion of a public plan in health care reform. Liberals, they say, are letting the perfect* be the enemy of the good, and risk getting nothing by insisting on everything*.

Well, here's Republican Senator Chuck Grassley, via today's Wall Street Journal:

Sen. Charles Grassley signaled growing skepticism about the likelihood of Democrat-led health-care legislation passing this year, telling a town-hall meeting here Monday, “Now is the time to do this right or not do it.”

...

In an interview, he vowed not to vote for an “imperfect bill” that includes a public option or gives the government too much control over end-of-life issues.

I wonder if we'll see the same amount of media hand-wringing over Grassley's refusal to vote for what he considers an “imperfect bill.” Will he be denounced for being willing to do nothing at all rather than something he considers imperfect? Will he be portrayed as stubborn and unyielding and reckless?

* Never mind that the public option is, for many liberals, neither “perfect” nor “everything,” but a huge concession to the Right -- it isn't single-payer.