President Obama on health reform: I am not going to walk away just because it's hard.

[ProSense]

OBAMA: 'I AM NOT GOING TO WALK AWAY'....

"...I had no illusions when I took on health care. It was always going to be hard. I knew from the beginning that seven Presidents had tried it and seven Presidents had failed. But I also knew that insurance premiums had more than doubled in the past decade, that out-of-pocket expenses had skyrocketed, that millions more people had lost their insurance, and that it would only get worse.

"I took this up because I want to ease the burdens on all the families and small businesses that can't afford to pay outrageous rates. I want to protect mothers, fathers, children from being targeted by the worst practices of the insurance industry.

"Now, we've gotten pretty far down the road, but I have to admit, we've run into a bit of a buzz saw along the way. The long process of getting things done runs headlong into the special interests, their armies of lobbyists, and partisan politics aimed at exploiting fears instead of getting things done. And the longer it's taken, the uglier the process has looked.

"I know folks in Washington are in a little bit of a frenzy this week, trying to figure out what the election in Massachusetts the other day means for health insurance reform, for Republicans and Democrats, and for me. This is what they love to do.

"But this isn't about me. It's about you. I didn't take up this issue to boost my poll numbers or score political points -- believe me, if I were, I would have picked something a lot easier than this. No, I'm trying to solve the problems that folks here in Elyria and across this country face every day. And I am not going to walk away just because it's hard. We're going to keep on working to get this done with Democrats, Republicans -- anyone who is willing to step up. Because I am not going to watch more people get crushed by costs, or denied the care they need by insurance company bureaucrats, or partisan politics, or special interest power in Washington." (emphasis added)

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

1. Nice sentiment, but he IS walking away because it's too hard

[Rosa Luxemburg]

2. no he's not walking away

this health reform is going to go on and on.

[dflprincess]

4. He walked away from health care reform

when he decided to protect the health insurance companies by forcing us to buy "coverage" with no guarantees that we'd have any better access to care.

So much for "keeping them honest". Which was a stupid statement - he admits the insurance companies are crooked but thinks we should continue to send them money.

[amborin]

8. +1000

[ProSense]

13. No, it's just that some people walked away from reality.

See people like Bernie Sanders are still fighting for this bill. Your opinion matters to you, but there are millions of other people who don't agree with you.

[dflprincess]

43. The people who are out of touch with reality are those who think coverage = care.

They must be the lucky ones who:
a) have really good insurance
b) can afford big out of pocket expenses or
c) have been lucky enough to never have us their insurance for a major problem.

[Name removed]

35. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Name removed]

40. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[dflprincess]

44. Libby deadbeat?

That's an interesting term to use on a Democratic website.

No, my little DLC friend, I did not expect "free" health care. I expected there to be either a premium for a public option or a tax if Obama and Congress had gone with expanding Medicare. I had hoped, that if the U.S. was smart, we might wind up paying less for actual access to care - you know that people in civilized countries pay much less for their health care than we do, don't you? What I did not expect was to be told that I must continue to pay into a for profit company while still being able to afford care because of the out of pockets.

For 38 years I've been voting for the candidate with the "D" after their name - even when I knew they were just a Republican in disguise, but those days are over - I'll either skip the race or vote for a third party candidate but my days of voting for Blue Dogs and DLCers are over. Besides, we've been told that we "libbies" are not needed and are irrelevant - so why worry about who I vote for? You Conservadems can win elections without us.

[ima_sinnic]

53. I guess they really know how to win friends and influence people

bitter fake democrats are so pathetic.

[GreenArrow]

37. Can't say it any more clearly than that.

He might as well walk away because he's not willing to approach the fight in earnest.

[LuckyTheDog]

42. I agree

Here's the thing about Obama: He does not give up easily. Remember how he was supposed to be "finished" after the whole Rev. Wright kerfuffle?

[jefferson_dem]

3. Reality bites...

We can look back and question what could have been done differently. "Iacta alea est"...the die is cast. Time to concede that real, robust health reform will not happen. It's time to take what we can get, frame it as a win, blame the repugs for standing against reform, and move on.

[amborin]

7. "frame it as a win" how cynical can one get! shills for fake HCR can't fool the public

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

16. We have known that real robust reform was dead for over a month. But...

We have known that real robust reform was dead for over a month. But there was still an argument for passing what we had.

That argument may be right, it may be wrong, but it hasn't changed in the intervening month.

All that has changed is the fortitude of the players.

[jefferson_dem]

21. The players...yes.

POTUS is only one. Right now, it's congress that's freaking out, and perhaps rightly so given the poll numbers. They are kind of critical to getting legislation passed. Obama can beat his chest all day about needing this or that reform. Facts are facts.

[CreekDog]

19. I agree

Though I don't plan to forget how our own leadership undermined health care reform.

[slipslidingaway]

22. Not great advice ...

"...frame it as a win, blame the repugs..."

The other side does the same thing ... and the people continue to lose.

[jefferson_dem]

26. Big difference...

We are right. The other side is not.

[slipslidingaway]

30. That will get us far, they are always wrong and our side is always ...

right. I know a few Republican family members who were not at all thrilled with Clinton, Rubin and Summers back in the late 90's.

But according to you they were right, all Democrats are right 100% of the time. And if they are not, just pretend that they are anyway. Great message, the corporations thank you!

:shrug:

[rapturedbyrobots]

54. that is exactly what is wrong

with 2 party...us vs. them politics.

[MissDeeds]

57. Delete

Self edit: Not worth the effort...

[amborin]

5. he's walking away & leaving crucial banking details to Congress: just like HCR:

"Moreover, it was unclear if the twin proposals — to ban banks with federally insured deposits from casting risky bets in the markets, and to resist further consolidation in the financial industry — would have done much if anything to forestall the crisis that pushed the economic system to the brink of collapse in 2008.

Mr. Obama appeared to be leaving crucial details to be hashed out by Congress, where partisan tussling has already threatened another reform the president supports — the creation of a consumer protection agency that would have oversight over credit cards, mortgages and other lending products..."

snip

nytims.com

[tabatha]

9. MarketWatch says "A return to sanity in banking"

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/obamas-proposes-something-for-wall-street-sanity-2010-01-21?dist=countdown


But in cleaving these businesses from the big banks, the plan is the first serious recognition that these businesses can't co-exist under the same roof. It's a good start.

Regulators need to be certain the web of connections in the industry is cut. The collapse of one of these firms must not be able to knock the financial system off its pins.

The plan's immediate impact would be to scale down institutions. Banks would be broken up and the parts sold in offerings or to big investors.

[Qutzupalotl]

17. Writing legislation is Congress' job. nt

[CreekDog]

20. well getting them to pass it has generally been a President's job

at least those Presidents you remember.

[ProSense]

23. It takes eight votes, with signigficant negotiating, to pass health reform

The bill has passed seven of the eight votes.

[inna]

64. I'm missing your reasoning here. Why 8 and 7/8? Please explain.

[slipslidingaway]

32. And Congress did not make the behind the scene deals. n/t

[Qutzupalotl]

47. Ben Nelson did.

[slipslidingaway]

48. Without the approval of the WH and Obama who happened to announce..

the deal? Now maybe Nelson was being sneaky, but he was one of the people who introduced the amendment for more concessions from Pharma.

Video and other links of Carper defending the WH deal.

Senator Carper Publicly Defends Secret PhRMA Deal In Exchange For Support Ads

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=6622945&mesg_id=6622945

[slipslidingaway]

61. Link that it was Ben Nelson who made the deal with Pharma? n/t

[slipslidingaway]

31. Did Congress make the deal with Pharma - NO - they were just expected

to rubber stamp the deal made by the WH.

All for 150 million dollars in ads to support the HC bill.

:(

So when Obama said enough is enough on this issue during the campaign, people were fools to believe what he was saying. Is that the message?

[Oregone]

6. Walk away because the Senate bill blows

[tabatha]

12. That is why it has been halted.

They are looking for another path.

[Vincardog]

10. I will believe Barack when he fires Rahm and Timmy, in short when his ACTIONS match his speech.

[slipslidingaway]

11. Nice words, but we need someone to actually fight Pharma and the ...

insurance companies, not make closed door deals.

[FrenchieCat]

14. Folks are so fucking critical sitting there........

after they worked against just about everything this President tried to do.

They can kiss my ass, and they can say hello to President Walmart.
At this point I don't give a fuck about the ingrates....
cause they don't deserve shit, far as I'm concerned.

[Highway61]

29. .....

:thumbsup:

[bigwillq]

33. What folks are you talking about?

People on a message board? :shrug:

[daa]

15. Another fancy speech, where's the beef? eom

[amborin]

51. excatly; more populist rhetoric, now that it's finally sinking in Americans aren't that stupid n/t

[CreekDog]

18. I know he is working hard...but has he been working hard on health care?

I sure doesn't *look* like he is. :shrug:

[ProSense]

25. The health bills are in conference

Someone has been working hard. If you think it's the Congress, fine.

The fact is health care reform has made remarkable progress through the legislative mill.

[CreekDog]

34. I'm not arguing against that...I'm questioning whether Obama's role has been forceful enough

I'm sorry, but Obama has got to scare people in Congress. Fear is being used against us by everyone else and is our side saying --if you don't do this...BAM, something bad is going to happen? Not really.

And that's frustrating.

[Teaser]

24. Prosense: I support the president, but

I'm sorry, this week has been an epic fail for him. No backup plan in place. No message discipline being imposed. No clear trajectory for where to go from here.

He needs to get his shit in order. Which is what, I thought, Rahm was supposed to be for.

[ProSense]

27. Why are you telling me? This week

has proven to be like any other week when Democrats face a challenge. Elected officials and voters first reaction is panic.

You expected message discipline from Democrats?

Not a single Democrat is on message.

It's good that Obama made this statement now, after the dust (and the dumb comments) settled.

[jefferson_dem]

28. VIDEO of remarks here -

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/35015535#35015535

[treestar]

36. Some people can do nothing but criticize and claim on a message board that

THEY knew how to do it better.

If only they'd lowered themselves to get elected to public office.

[liberal N proud]

38. +1000

[rapturedbyrobots]

55. if only they could afford

to go to a fancy law school. so that they would even be visible to selection committees that provide our pre-screened candidates. you do know how national politics works right? you can't just go up and put your name on the list in most districts.

[treestar]

62. You can certainly start at the bottom and don't have to be a lawyer at all

Obama himself was not a rich person and was a community organizer.

Anyone can start at the bottom - school boards and the like. That's how Republicans got their movement going. Too many progressives seem to expect to rise to the top without doing the footwork and then to complain they are not represented.

[rug]

39. It's hard to walk away when you were never there.

[ima_sinnic]

41. he walked away a long time ago, back when he handed it over to Max Baucus

back when he said he didn't campaign on a public option
back when he made those back-door deals with big pharma
back when he said he wouldn't sign a bill without a PO with his fingers crossed behind his back.

his "walking away" has been a big part of the problem.

[slipslidingaway]

49. He walked away from what he told the people :( n/t

[amborin]

50. +1000

[Phx_Dem]

45. Never thought you would!!

[Ter]

46. That's what she said

:)

[rateyes]

52. He didn't walk away...

he ran away from real reform.

[hulka38]

56. I don't see him walking away from big insurance and pharma so easily either.

He's going to step up and get it done one way or another. Promises were made away from the microphones and cameras and large sums of money were guaranteed.

[Robeson]

58. This has been a political disaster, and has compromised his presidency....

...I'm sure he'd be the first to admit it.

[Stand and Fight]

59. More pretty words lacking in forth-right action. n/t

[eridani]

60. Unfortunately, he fully intends to let people be denied care by insurance companies

There is nothing at all in the bills to prevent that. And as long as he insists on working with Repukes, we can look forward to nothing but getting screwed by the well-heeled even worse than we are now.

[IndianaGreen]

63. According to Sen. Sherrod Brown, even now Obama won't lead on HCR

No Obama. No Plan.

Josh Marshall | January 22, 2010, 5:50PM

Brian Beutler interviewed Sen. Sherrod Brown today to get his read on the state of health care reform negotiations and whether or not there's any plan ...

Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) is engaged with House progressives, trying to tease out a solution to the health care reform impasse--but he says that at the highest levels of the Senate and the White House, there's still no plan, and he doubts whether President Obama will insert himself forcefully into the process.

http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/2010/01/no_obama_no_plan.php?ref=fpblg

Based on his conversations with House progressives, Brown says the mood right now is fairly dour.

"They're very unhappy," Brown admits. "Their viewpoint is it can't be just the Senate version because, first of all, it's not what they want in terms of the substance, and second it really writes them out of having any impact."

Nevertheless, he doesn't imagine the President will lay out a way forward in his State of the Union address next week, and he won't push any buttons in the Senate.

"I doubt if he does, I don't think he'll do a procedural thing. I don't think he will engage in process," Brown said of State of the Union.

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/01/sherrod-brown-still-no-health-care-reform-strategy.php