Jack & Jill Politics

The announcer said it starts at 2:30 eastern

Isnt clear by now that the republicans do not want to compromise with this health care reform. Why does President Obama continue to be the nice guy, and continue to “change” his vision of Health care for this country.
I am blessed that my family and I work for the city and county of San Francisco. I have had 2 hip replacements, and I have received excellent health care for now. As long as I have my job, we will be OK???????? I hate to just depend on this. My current health insurance is Blue Shield, which at this moment In time I am very pleased with. But what happens if i loose my job?

Obama guarantees health care overhaul will pass

By CHARLES BABINGTON, Associated Press Writer Charles Babington, Associated Press Writer – 6 mins ago

WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama guaranteed Thursday that his health care overhaul will win approval and said any bill he signs will have to reduce rapidly rising costs, protect consumers from insurance abuses and provide affordable choices to the uninsured — while not adding to the federal deficit.

Obama listed those four “bullet points” as his basic requirements in response to a question from a caller to a Philadelphia-based talk radio show. Host Michael Smerconish interviewed Obama at the White House during the show and Obama took questions from several listeners.

Another caller said he sensed the administration's “knees are bucklin' a little bit” under criticism of the proposals. Obama said he was as determined as ever and “I guarantee you, Joe, we are going to get health care reform done.”

Obama is struggling to regain the momentum on his top domestic priority — a comprehensive bill that would extend health coverage to nearly 50 million Americans who lack it and restrain skyrocketing costs. Opponents of the overhaul have drowned out supporters at lawmakers' town halls around the country this month, and backing for Obama's effort has slipped in opinion polls. Congressional Democratic

leaders are preparing to go it alone on legislation although bipartisan negotiations continue in the Senate.

The president insisted Thursday that there has been no change in the administration's position that a government option for health insurance coverage should be considered as part of legislation to overhaul the system.

Responding to a question from Smerconish, Obama said, “The press got excited and some folks on the left got a little excited” when the administration last weekend made statements indicating that a federally run health insurance option was just one of several alternatives.

“Our position hasn't changed,” he said.

Later Thursday, he visited the Democratic National Committee headquarters for a rally designed to re-energize activists who were instrumental is his drive to the presidency.

“Winning the election is just the start,” he told an audience at the DNC and thousands watching online and listening by telephone. “Victory in an election wasn't the change that we sought.”

Obama said lies had spread about Democrats' plans, including claims Washington would create “death panels” or pay for health insurance for illegal immigrants.

“C'mon,” a mocking Obama told the cheering crowd. “We can have a real debate because health care is hard and there are some legitimate issues that have to be sorted through and worked on.”

While Obama says he's still looking for Republican support for a comprehensive health care bill, Democrats privately are preparing a one-party push, which they feel is all but inevitable.

On Wednesday, Obama urged religious leaders to back his proposals, arguing that health coverage for Americans is a “core ethical and moral obligation.” Polls continued to show slippage in support for the president's approach, although respondents expressed even less confidence in Republicans' handling of health care.

Vice President Joe Biden met with health care professionals in Chicago on Thursday and planned to announce nearly $1.2 billion in grants to help hospitals transition to electronic medical records. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius was joining him.

Former Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney said Thursday that Obama is struggling to get a health care bill because he has been too deferential to liberals. Romney, who may challenge Obama in 2012, said on CBS' “The Early Show” that “if the president wants to get something done, he needs to put aside the extreme liberal wing of his party.”

Some Democrats say a strong-arm tactic on Senate health care legislation that would negate the need for any GOP votes might be more effective than previously thought.

The legislative tactic, called “reconciliation,” would allow senators to get around a bill-killing filibuster without mustering the 60 votes usually needed. Democrats control 60 of the Senate's 100 seats, but some moderate Senate Democrats have expressed reservations about Obama's plan.

Two Democrats — Robert Byrd of West Virginia and Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts — are seriously ill and often absent. Kennedy sent a letter Tuesday to Massachusetts leaders asking that they change state law to allow someone to be quickly appointed to his seat in Congress “should a vacancy occur.”

While always contentious, reconciliation lets the Senate pass some measures with a simple majority vote. Non-budget-related items can be challenged, however, and some lawmakers say reconciliation would knock so many provisions from Obama's health care plan that the result would be “Swiss cheese.”

Still, Jim Manley, spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., warned Republicans Wednesday that reconciliation is a real option. The White House and Senate Democratic leaders still prefer a bipartisan bill, he said, but “patience is not unlimited and we are determined to get something done this year by any legislative means necessary.”

Administration officials and congressional Democrats were deeply discouraged this week when key Republican lawmakers seemed more critical than ever about various Democratic-drafted health care bills pending in the House and Senate. They said they still hope Senate Finance Committee efforts to craft a bipartisan compromise can succeed, although private remarks were more pessimistic.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090820/ap_on_go_pr…

I think Obama laid out his position on the Public Option clearly. He supports it. But this reform contains a lot more than the public option, and if we make the entire debate about the public option, then 80+% of Americans who already have health insurance think that this reform is not about them. And people start getting worried that they will be forced to switch to a public option. We have to hammer home to people that reform is about protecting consumers, providing coverage to all, and reducing costs. Its not about the public option. The public option will help with all that, but there are many other parts of this reform that also tackle this. In the president's words, the bulk of the reform is like a “belt”, while the public option is like “suspenders”. Ultimately, there will be health reform, and it will include a public option.

He said more:

“…Our position hasn't changed. We think that the key is cost control, competition, making sure that people have good, quality options. If we're able to achieve that, that's the end that we're seeking. And the means — you know, we can have some good arguments about what the best way to achieve it is, but we've got to change because the status quo is unsustainable.”
http://www.whitehouse.gov/the_press_office/Radi…

80% of Americans will not be affected by the public option, yet 100% of the hysteria over health reform is about it. As Obama said, its just one part of health reform. Talk about the entirety of the proposal and quit getting played by the people who want you to believe the public option is the only thing that matters.

..knowing when you're being bullshitted is not being played.

What part of my post says that? Losing the public option will not deny that 20% health care since the 8 consumer protections will still provide access to more Americans than the status quo does. If by some chance the public option ends up being dropped in order to ensure the 8 consumer protections make it into law, then there's nothing stopping us from pushing for the public option to be added later as a cost saving measure during the budget reconciliation process. In fact, today the Democrats are considering splitting the bill into two parts and saving the more volatile measures for budget reconciliation. Are you hearing that from the progressive bloggers? No. What you've been hearing from Hamsher and her horde of progressive allies in Congress are threats to scuttle ALL HEALTH REFORM BILLS if the public option isn't included. I don't care how many blog posts you put on the front page filled with hysterical ultimatums about the public option, anyone who's willing to nuke the entire bill over the public option is a damned self serving fool who's willing throw away a chance to improve health care for everyone because they've let themselves get sucked into another ideological war with the Republicans.

I suggest people get the facts about everything that's being proposed for health reform and quit making the entire thing about the public option. Right now, the left is starting to become just as unhinged and impractical about health reform as the right has been. And I find that pretty depressing, especially when people are promoting it from the pages of JJP.

I am posting this once again so you can read the bullet points about the 8 consumer protections for yourself.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/health-insurance-cons…

Yes, characterizing skepticism, even angry skepticism, as paranoia and fear is a bit heated, I agree.

Exactly! These are smart people. I have no doubt that in private they will concede they've botched the message war and was way late in responding to insanity from the Right. That I don't get. It's a never ending war with Republicans. And the nuclear option is always their FIRST weapon of choice. Take everything and everyone down with them. You can never sleep on an enemy like that.

80+% of Americans? Let's see: 300 Million in this country and 50+ without health insurance. I've never been good at math, but even I can put two and two together. Not only that, add the underinsured (conservatively speaking 20 to 30 Million)…and then we're talking about a whole lot of people who could use a medicare-like public option.

thanks for posting this video cheryl.

You are right the 8 consumer protections are important but what good do they do if my premium is more than $500 per month. I don't have $500 per month. That is why the public option is so important. It provides competition where the existing insurance companies don't provide enough to drive the premiums down so that insurance is more affordable.

My sincere apologies for having misinterpreted the intent of your comment. I think it would be fair, however, for you to accept some measure of responsibility for my confusion given your assertion that 100 percent of the hysteria about health reform is due to the public option. In addition, given subsequent claims you made down thread, a reasonable person could honestly conclude that you are placing all or nearly of the blame for this rising tide of public hysteria at the doorstep of the political progressive community.

Your understandable desire to see health insurance landscape altered in a way that is most beneficial to the largest number of people is a goal that I share as well. Where we differ, I believe, is that you see the proponents of the public option as being afflicted with an obsession that cannot reasonably be sated at this time. You fear that our demand for the public option is blinding us to what is possible to achieve in this political environment.

That may be true but the clamor for a public option has increased, not because of our alleged idee fixe, but, rather because we were repeatedly denied an opportunity to discuss the public option in those critical venues and forums where health care insurance reform was being discussed by members of Congress.

The Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, has joined the progressive hysterics:

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/…

The Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, has joined the progressive hysterics:

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/…