Rep. Jan Schakowsky -- chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus' Health Care Task Force -- has not been shy about her support for a public option, pledging to vote against any bill that did not include one. She's also gone on the record in recent weeks insisting that the government-run plan will survive the final months of health care reform negotiations. The North Side Democrat reiterated that belief today at a press conference in D.C., reports Talking Points Memo's Brian Beutler. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi joined Schakowsky at the podium and echoed that sentiment, noting that the fight is not about the inclusion of a public plan but rather how it negotiates rates. "The question is: which form will it take?," Beutler quotes Pelosi saying.

As the health care battle comes to a head on Capitol Hill, this is an encouraging message from two of the most powerful women in Washington.