Yesterday, Katie Couric asked Obama whether abortion would be covered under his health care plan (no one asked about abortion in today’s press conference). He responded with evasion and indifference, saying he wouldn’t, “at this stage,” “micromanage benefits,” and that there is “a tradition of, in this town, historically, of not financing abortions as part of government funded health care.” Oh well, if it’s a tradition, like Sloppy Joe Wednesdays and disregard of women’s health issues. Clearly, tradition must be given more weight than justice or whatever. “Rather than wade into that issue at this point, I think that it’s appropriate for us to figure out how to just deliver on the cost savings...” Like, did you know how much we can save by not covering anything related to chicks’ lady-parts? “...and not get distracted by the abortion debate at this station.” Those silly women, always trying to distract Obama from the important stuff.
HAVE THEY CHECKED BEHIND THE COUCH? Factoid Obama has been repeating over and over this week: 14,000 people lose their health insurance every day.
Press conference transcript.
OH, HE KNOWS US SO WELL: “a lot of Americans may be wondering, ‘What’s in this for me?”
“SO LET ME BE CLEAR” IS THE NEW “IN OTHER WORDS”: “So let me be clear: If we do not control these costs, we will not be able to control our deficit.”
YOU KNOW, THE CHEAP BEST CARE: “Our proposals would change incentives so that doctors and nurses are free to give patients the best care, just not the most expensive care.” Fortunately, there are no circumstances in which the best care is also the most expensive care; never happens.
“SO LET ME BE CLEAR” IS THE NEW “IN OTHER WORDS”: “So let me be clear: This isn’t about me. I have great health insurance, and so does every member of Congress.” I know that makes me feel better.
WHAT THIS IS ABOUT: “This is about the middle-class college graduate from Maryland whose health insurance expired when he changed jobs and woke up from the emergency surgery that he required with $10,000 worth of debt.” Ah yes, debt-insertion surgery.
“I want to cover everybody. Now, the truth is that, unless you have a -- what’s called a single-payer system, in which everybody is automatically covered, then you’re probably not going to reach every single individual because there’s always going to be somebody out there who thinks they’re indestructible and doesn’t want to get health care, doesn’t bother getting health care, and then, unfortunately, when they get hit by a bus, end up in the emergency room and the rest of us have to pay for it.” So what’s the argument here? Since he doesn’t support single-payer, I guess he’s okay with Indestructible Boy’s ER bill being paid by the rest of us. Maybe this person is just too big a jerk to be worth covering. Also, is Jim DeMint driving the bus?
He claims that 97 to 98% of the population will be covered. Sure it will.
BECAUSE RED IS OUR FAVORITE COLOR? “If there’s a blue pill and a red pill, and the blue pill is half the price of the red pill and works just as well, why not pay half price for the thing that’s going to make you well?”
BECAUSE IT WAS... MURDER! “But people are no longer talking about the financial system falling off a cliff.”
On Wall Street compensation: “I’d like to think that people would feel a little remorse and feel embarrassed and would not get million-dollar or multimillion-dollar bonuses.” Yes, because if there’s one thing they have with abundance on Wall Street, it’s remorse and a sense of embarrassment.
KEEP THEM HONEST? WHEN WERE THEY HONEST BEFORE? “And part of the reason we want to have a public option is just to help keep the insurance companies honest.”
AND A BUNCH OF GUYS WITH DART GUNS FOLLOW BIDEN EVERY MINUTE, IN CASE HE SAYS SOMETHING STUPID: Asked the silly question of whether he (and Congress) should get no better than the public option: “You know, I would be happy to abide by the same benefit package. I will just be honest with you. I’m the president of the United States, so I’ve got a doctor following me every minute...”
Asked about the arrest of Harvard’s Professor Henry Louis Gates, Jr. at his own home, he said “the Cambridge police acted stupidly.”
JIGGER, I SAID JIGGER! “I mean, if I was trying to jigger into -- well, I guess this is my house now, so... (LAUGHTER) ... it probably wouldn’t happen. But let’s say my old house in Chicago. (LAUGHTER) Here, I’d get shot.”
Obama was wonkish and, let’s face it, boring, like he has no real passion for the issue. Also rambling and at times evasive. It didn’t move the health-care debate along, didn’t put any pressure on Congress, or hit back against his critics. So why did he want to hold a prime-time press conference anyway?
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