According to Roll Call, Obama‘s number one Republican healthcare buddy in the Senate doesn’t even consider himself to be negotiating:

“I don’t even think it’s right for me to call [the Finance discussions] negotiations,” Grassley said, inside a steamy community center packed with a standing-room-only crowd of about 350 people. “We’re talking.”

So how does Grassley see his role, exactly?

Take one:

“I kind of feel like I’m a finger in the dike,” Grassley said.

Take two:

Grassley, a chief Senate health care negotiator, downplayed the ongoing bipartisan Finance Committee talks, saying his decision to stay at the table allows him to keep his constituents and fellow GOP Senators informed.

He’s just there to be the ear of his party, as Max Baucus falls over himself to keep diluting the healthcare reform bill in order to keep Grassley listening.

And when all the listening is done, and the Finance committee’s version is diluted beyond belief, Grassley wouldn’t even actually vote for it if it became the official Senate version of the bill:

The Iowa Republican, who is up for re-election next year, also said he does not plan to vote for a bill that does not attract the broad support of the Senate Republican Conference.

So at least this much is clear: Grassley isn’t lying at all when he says he’s not really negotiating with Baucus. Too bad nobody in the Democratic Party can explain that to Baucus or Obama.