So President Obama said that single payer was what the far left wanted?

[Cleita]

I always thought that national health care, like the British do it, where the government hires and pays health care providers, is far left. I always thought that single payer was the compromise between government health care and private delivery of health care. How did this get so twisted? I can't judge President Obama for his triangulation of the issue. I understand the pressure he is under. Maybe he IS playing chess. However, my board has equal squares on each side.