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July 22, 2009

Obama: Changes Will Make People Healthier

President Makes His Primetime Pitch for Health Care Reform, Saying He Will Not Increase Deficit

  • BERJAYA Video The Politics of Medicare

    CBS News' Chip Reid asks President Obama for specifics about how Medicare might change.

  • BERJAYA Video Analysis Of Obama's Reform

    Katie Couric speaks with "Face The Nation" host Bob Schieffer and CBS News correspondent Nancy Cordes about Pres. Obama's primetime press conference on health care reform.

  • President Barack Obama responds to questions during a news conference in the East Room of the White House in Washington, Wednesday July 22, 2009. Photo

    President Barack Obama responds to questions during a news conference in the East Room of the White House in Washington, Wednesday July 22, 2009.  (AP)

(CBS)  Updated at 10:15 p.m. ET

In a prime time press conference Wednesday night, President Obama said he cannot guarantee that health care reform will not bring about any changes in how patients receive insurance or care. The changes that occur, though, should be for the better, he said.

"Can I guarantee there are going to be no changes in the health care delivery system? No," Mr. Obama said. "The whole point is to try to encourage changes that work for the American people and make them healthier."

Mr. Obama said decisions about what treatments deserve to be insured should be made by doctors and medical professionals.

"That's not how it's working right now," the president said, adding that insurance companies often make those decisions now.

The president also touted the proposal for a government-sponsored insurance plan, or "public option," as a way to bring about positive changes and keep costs down.

"There had been reports just over the last couple of days of insurance companies making record profits... and premiums are going up," Mr. Obama said. "What's the constraint on that? ...Well, part of the way is to make sure that there's some competition out there."

The president's press conference followed days of aggressive promotion of his health care agenda in television interviews and online. In tonight's address, Mr. Obama tied the country's economic future to health care reform.

(Read Mr. Obama's full prepared remarks here.)

"Let me be clear," Mr. Obama said tonight. "If we do not control these costs, we will not be able to control our deficit. If we do not reform health care, your premiums and out-of-pocket costs will continue to skyrocket."

The president acknowledged, though, that Congress is held up figuring out how to pay for reform.

"Before we talk about how to pay for it, let's talk about what needs to get done," Mr. Obama said.

The president said many Americans have concerns about how the proposed changes will affect their lives. In fact, the public has grown increasingly doubtful Mr. Obama can accomplish his goals, including health care reform, a recent Associated Press poll found.

However, Mr. Obama promised Congress has already agreed to some key points: Those with health insurance already will have more more security and more stability, he said. Furthermore, he said, the government will stay out of people's health care decisions, out-of-pocket costs will be limited and preventive measures like check-ups and mammograms will be covered.

Congress has also already agreed to establish an insurance exchange for individuals and small businesses, the president pointed out, and insurance companies will not be allowed to deny coverage for people with pre-existing conditions.

The president pointed out that he expects two-thirds of the bill to be paid for by re-allocating money already in the health care system more efficiently.

He said he is open to ideas from Congress on how to cover the rest of the cost, but he added, "I don't want that final one third of the cost of health care to be completely shouldered on the backs of the middle class."

Mr. Obama said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's proposal to tax families making more than $1 million a year meets his principle of keeping that burden off the middle class. He also said it is potentially possible to fund even more than two-thirds of reform by identifying more waste in the system.

CBS News Chief White House Correspondent Chip Reid asked the president what sacrifices beneficiaries will have to make in order to cut costs in Medicare. The president has proposed leaving Medicare payment rates up to an independent body of experts.

"It's not going to reduce Medicare benefits," Mr. Obama said, referring to the cuts that the commission would likely propose. "What it's going to do is to change how those benefits are delivered so that they're more efficient."

He related how the the pharmaceutical industry agreed to find $80 billion in cost savings "because there's probably even more waste than $80 billion in terms of how the drug plan in Medicare is administered."

On a day when bipartisan negotiations for health care reform continued to unravel, Mr. Obama stepped up his rhetoric against Republicans.

"I've heard that one Republican strategist told his party that even though they may want to compromise, it's better politics to 'go for the kill,'" the president said. "Another Republican senator said that defeating health reform is about 'breaking' me."

The president repeated his earlier message that "this isn�t about me."

"This debate is about the letters I read when I sit in the Oval Office every day, and the stories I hear at town hall meetings," he said. "This debate is not a game for these Americans, and they cannot afford to wait for reform any longer."

The president said he has been "frustrated by some of the misinformation" coming from Republicans, though he appreciates efforts to cooperate from Senators like Chuck Grassley and Olympia Snowe. He also acknowleged that not all Democrats are happy with the legislation so far, but their concerns are being considered.

"This is part of the normal give and take of the legislative process," he said.

More Coverage of Obama's Press Conference:

Obama: Changes Will Make People Healthier

Full Transcript Full Video

Obama: Cops Acted "Stupidly" in Professor's Arrest

Obama: "Why Not Pay Half Price?"

Obama: Banks Will Act Recklessly Without Reform

Bob Schieffer: Obama Trying to Take Control

Reality Check: Do Obama's Health Care Claims Hold Up?

Jindal Pans Obama's "Marketing" of Health Plan?

Obama's "Stupid" Comment Disappoints Cop

More Video: Opening Statement On Professor Gates Sacrifices For Healthcare Reform? Politics of Medicare Instant Analysis from Bob Schieffer and Nancy Cordes

� MMIX, CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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Add a Comment See all 261 Comments
by shumcheeyin July 22, 2009 8:31 PM EDT
Barrack Obama is the best President of the United States since its founding!
Reply to this comment
by am0123 July 22, 2009 9:13 PM EDT
You must be kidding! The only thing he is "the best" at is his rhetoric and dancing around the issue.
by realityzone July 22, 2009 9:18 PM EDT
Ur_Majesty-007, he's just college educated unlike republicans who regard incompetence and stupidity as virtue.
by flopez5 July 22, 2009 9:47 PM EDT
Who can argue with that. After all, how many other Presidents have created 2 billion jobs, save the worlds ecological system, and correctly identified the Cambridge P. D. as being stupid and racist?
by Mortarman29 July 22, 2009 9:55 PM EDT
Kool aid being served all over Marxist land tonight!
by bajajohn1 July 22, 2009 10:37 PM EDT
Shumcheeyin: Your enthusiasm is admirable. The bloggers detracting from you comment are the same people who are against any and all things proposed by the present administration. Frankly, they are a yoke on America, a conservative yoke whose main aspiration is to keep feeding from the working middle class of America. Hang in there.
by flopez5 July 22, 2009 11:24 PM EDT
bajajohn, the yoke is on you, apparently. Hang five.
by wtcmedic911 July 23, 2009 12:36 AM EDT
what an idiot...
by enriquieGonzales July 23, 2009 6:57 AM EDT
If you beleive what Obama Says....ask yourself this Why? What credibility does Obama have. Rev Wright experience!! Bill AYers!! Obama lied and bullied his way up.
by skyk-2009 July 23, 2009 7:06 AM EDT
I don't know if he's the BEST yet but one thing is certain he is one of the hardest working AND is someone who isn't afraid to take on Problems we have faced for a very long time. He is also NOT afraid to take on Corporate Power Brokers. I LIKE this PRESIDENT... a LOT!
by enriquieGonzales July 23, 2009 7:11 AM EDT
Certainly there are some similarities. Look at Hitler's campaign early on, it didn't blatantly support facism. The Nazis promised to clamp down on Big Business and end the class struggle (sounds familiar). It appealed to the young most, they thought they would fight the evil bourgeois and and establish a youth dominated culture. The uprising of the poor and beaten down, crushed by the evil corporations and industrialist (again, sounds familiar). Along with the youth idea, the NAZIs would use the slight of hand trick, accusing their opponents of facism; evil creatures who hoped only to increase the wealth gap and control the downtrodden proletariet. Hitler gained the young and the old alike with idealism.

The biggest similarity is the idea of Nationalism and Socialism. Americans are naturally nationalists, and it is a good side to appeal to. Also, Obama is in favor of many socialist initiatives. So, it would be appropriate to call Obama a NAZI (An advocate of National Socialism). Both NAZIs.
by jakedog030 July 23, 2009 7:35 AM EDT
What planet do you live on?
by rednomo July 23, 2009 9:09 AM EDT
Executives and other highly compensated employees now receive more than one-third of all pay in the U.S., according to a Wall Street Journal analysis of Social Security Administration data -- without counting billions of dollars more in pay that remains off federal radar screens that measure wages and salaries.


Highly paid employees received nearly $2.1 trillion of the $6.4 trillion in total U.S. pay in 2007, the latest figures available. The compensation numbers don't include incentive stock options, unexercised stock options, unvested restricted stock units and certain benefits.

The pay of employees who receive more than the Social Security wage base, now $106,800, increased by 78%, or nearly $1 trillion, over the past decade, exceeding the 61% increase for other workers, according to the analysis. In the five years ending in 2007, earnings for American workers rose 24%, half the 48% gain for the top-paid. The result: The top-paid represent 33% of the total, up from 28% in 2002.

The growing portion of pay that exceeds the maximum amount subject to payroll taxes has contributed to the weakening of the Social Security trust fund. In May, the government said the Social Security fund would be exhausted in 2037, four years earlier than was predicted in 2008.
by guyfrompa46 July 23, 2009 9:44 AM EDT
Yikes, you're an idiot.
by shaherazod July 22, 2009 8:47 PM EDT
You are an AH. I spent over 30 minutes writting what I thought and guess what....I wasn't registered. Well idiot, you should not let the website allow som eone go so far before you choose to lay down the requirements.

You spoke about how your children would handle health care......do they really need to?

Do not do this to me again, erase what I have to say. I am now unemployed after 35 years with one company. Are you really blaming wall street? You truly are an idiot. I have never felt the need to express my anger until I heard you. You are still a Junior Senator and incapable of running the country. You are still an uneducatedc and and double talking idiot! Lets just say, I have no faith in you or your idiotic speech manager PS; I'm sure you will never see this....wish you would.
Reply to this comment
by pvperson3 July 22, 2009 8:57 PM EDT
Spoken like an unwashed redneck, low IQ imbecile unable to form a coherent sentence.
by azure13 July 23, 2009 4:08 AM EDT
lol, so you think it's all Obamas fault? lmao, no wonder you don't have a job. They were carrying your incompetent ass at that company for 35 years and finally got rid of the dead wood.

This recession was in the making looong before our current pres got in office. Dimwit.
by enriquieGonzales July 23, 2009 7:03 AM EDT
What kind of President would this make.

1.Student of Rev Wright, 20 years with a racist pastor
2.Student of Bill Ayers, he steps on american flags.
3.Student of a Communist Mentor...its in his Memoirs.
4.Student of a far left radical ideology

What kind of President would this be?
by skyk-2009 July 23, 2009 7:09 AM EDT
enriquieGonzales, Do you HONESTLY think anyone is buying this trash anymore? The ISSUE is HEALTH CARE and anyone believing Republican's have any goal right now OTHER than stopping any reform is dreaming!
by Meg003 July 22, 2009 8:51 PM EDT
"Before we talk about how to pay for it, let's talk about what needs to get done," Mr. Obama said.

Classic! My children used to try that line at the video game store.
Reply to this comment
by mccain08nc July 22, 2009 9:38 PM EDT
Dems and liberals never worry about how to pay for things they know they mostly in the bottom 40% of americans who pay no taxes. This means they know it won't be them paying for it so they are all for living off teh pay checks of someone else.
by the74blaster July 22, 2009 10:02 PM EDT
by mccain08nc July 22, 2009 9:38 PM EDT
Dems and liberals never worry about how to pay for things they know they mostly in the bottom 40% of americans who pay no taxes. This means they know it won't be them paying for it so they are all for living off teh pay checks of someone else.
_______________________________________________________________________

I have a simple question for you.

I do not recall reading any of your posts that opposed the 5 trillion Bush and his GOP supporters spent prior to the Obama adminstration.

Do you care to explain that?
by skyk-2009 July 23, 2009 7:11 AM EDT
mccain08nc, I believe the President said he would NOT sign a bill that adds to our deficit. It's no wonder you poor folks are still buying the Republican Lies...LOL
by Freddie6 July 22, 2009 8:51 PM EDT
Oh my god.....is this clown for real or not???!!! Not a word about tort reform, not a thing about the billions spent on illegal aliens...I really think his handlers blew this one - or maybe they didn't program the teleprompter properly. Please add up the lies in the speech...maybe this clown can't even count that high..

By the way, did you see the press questioners???? They looked like beaten mules after they came back from the rental office....astounding!!!!!
Reply to this comment
by pvperson3 July 22, 2009 8:55 PM EDT
Gee idiot, do you really think a press conference about "health care" should have addressed tort reform or illegal aliens?
by Freddie6 July 22, 2009 8:58 PM EDT
The issue is health cost. tort reform and elimation of illegal costs go a long way to reduce these costs.......or is that too hard for you wizards of the left to contemplate.......???
by pvperson3 July 22, 2009 9:03 PM EDT
Funny Freddie that we've only heard that crap from you right wingers nutcakes to defeat any reform. You wouldn't work for a "health care provider" now do you?
by pvperson3 July 22, 2009 9:05 PM EDT
Not to men5tion your obvious xenophobia Freddie, or did that part just slip out?
by Mortarman29 July 22, 2009 9:57 PM EDT
See these Marxist idiots have no clue. They dont research anything. They dont understand what is going on. They just repeat what Obama Bin Biden says.
by the74blaster July 22, 2009 10:08 PM EDT
by Mortarman29 July 22, 2009 9:57 PM EDT
See these Marxist idiots have no clue. They dont research anything. They dont understand what is going on. They just repeat what Obama Bin Biden says.

______________________________________________________________________

Now you are getting nasty...comparing liberals to the blind-lemming-dittoheads that listen to Rush Limbaugh and Fox news!

Stop it!
by bajajohn1 July 22, 2009 10:43 PM EDT
These Republican morons are truly unpatriotic. Their only love is money, not their nation. Did you not hear? If the status quo in terms of health care is not changed, this country's deficits will increase to the point of bankrupting the nation. How in the hell else can anyone explain that to you unthinking cretins?
by enriquieGonzales July 23, 2009 7:09 AM EDT
Obama wants to destroy this country and build it up the way a good socialist Country should operate. We will be no diffrent that Europe, why dont we just join the EU. The positive thing is that its waking up nearly eveyone. Except of course the hard-core Acorn and Brown Shirts that work for Obama with our Stimulus Money. Where is that money by the way?
by skyk-2009 July 23, 2009 7:14 AM EDT
Freddie6, I believe one of the BIG headlines YESTERDAY was about illegal's. THEY are not going to be covered. I know you poor souls are scared, that's what Republican's have counted on for DECADES. I know you are afraid of anyone who isn't like you, that to Republican's have used against you for Decades but you MUST try to be a citizen here... WE already KNOW the Republican's Plan, Scare, Stall and do NOTHING. We just can't afford that anymore.
by btr2oz July 24, 2009 4:23 AM EDT
He hand picks who he calls on. It's all decided in advance. He never really answered any of the questions but instead went off on tangents in order to make us forget what was asked in the first place. After the so called "press conference" more like a "free" prime time speech if you ask me; the journalists looked around the room as if they were thinking, what the hell was that? I didn't see any Koolaid drinkers there last night, just coffee smellers. He looked angry, nervous, and why must he continually mention the fact that "he's the president." No ****, like we need to be reminded. Fact is he is not keeping any of his campaign promises. Transparency? There should have NEVER been:
Any bailouts.
Any more borrowing from China.
Any more printing money as if it were play money.
We shouldn't pay for bonuses, vacations, spa treatments, retreats, for for that matter any kind of treats!
This entire heathcare reform should be flushed!
What incentive is there for anyone to become a doctor OR go into any medical profession if that passes?
My sis and I opened a special type of restaurant in 2006. It's doing OK. We don't have health insurance because we can't even afford to pay ourselves $300 a week, if we do get $300 a week (that is a great week) we borrowed nothing, we used our savings, we are still for the most part using savings money to live on. We qualify for food stamps but choose not to get them. We didn't qualify for any stimulus money - EVER! We don't really have any income because what we make is considered a reimbursement of our savings. If everyone could apply for insurance and the price was based on what they could afford i.e. show 2 years of tax returns and some bank statements, then, at least it would be fair. Rather than the present (re-pricing) that insurance companies do by making contracts with doctors and then re-pricing the medical charges. Why should the doctors and hospitals take a huge hit from people who could afford to pay more because they earn more. Nothing should be free or run by the government, but people who are going through lean times should be given a break. Obama wants to let the elderly die and decrease the surplus population. And if anything needed to be bailed out, whay wasn't it social security, medicare and medicaid? Those have been in trouble a long time. Not GM, or AIG, or any of those corporations and banks. And let the people have some say in all of this, thorough voting (which if anything needed to be the #1 thing to reform it's the voting system!) after it gets reliable, then let the people vote on the important issues of the day.
POLITICIANS YOU ARE PULIC SERVANTS, NOT DICTATORS. YOU WORK FOR US, WE DO NOT WORK FOR YOU. AND FOR GOD'S SAKE GO BACK TO WHAT PRESIDENT KENNEDY SAID, ASK NOT WHAT THE COUNTRY CAN DO FOR YOU, ASK WHAT YOU CAN DO FOR YOUR COUNTRY! NO PERSON SHOULD BE PERMITTED TO RUN FOR COMMANDER AND CHIEF UNLESS HE OR SHE HAVE SERVED THIS COUNTRY AND THERE NEEDS TO BE TERM LIMITS ACROSS THE BOARD, EVEN ON THE SUPREME COURT. OUR FOUNDING FATHERS ARE TURNING IN THEIR GRAVES!
by shaherazod July 22, 2009 8:53 PM EDT
I have never used bad language, but you really push me to say something bad becuase you are so ignorant and uncaring about what you say
Reply to this comment
by pvperson3 July 22, 2009 8:59 PM EDT
Just call then "neo-cons", that's about as bad an insult as you can get and still stay on the boards.
by azure13 July 23, 2009 4:10 AM EDT
America spends 16% of its GDP on health care.

Canada spends 11%

France spends 10%

England spends 9%

They cover everyone, we don't.

They generally like, and don't complain about, their insurance. Ours stinks.

OK, that's the math. What's wrong with this picture.
by skyk-2009 July 23, 2009 7:17 AM EDT
What I can't understand is why people keep buying the same tired OLD line from the Republican's. On one hand they will tell you that a Government Plan won't work because the Government can't do it right. Then, almost in the same breath, they tell you we can't have a Government run plan because it will drive private insurance, the one's making RECORD PROFITS during a recession, out of business. Now what in this world would cause any PERSON or Company to go into a Public Plan IF the plan was no good OR wasn't cheaper? It's INSANITY I tell you... the Right has just went into the Twilight Zone for some reason.
by gkantz July 22, 2009 8:59 PM EDT
Already everyone is writing off this guy and forgetting about the "AH" we had in the White House for the last eight years. Mr. Shaherazod, I sympathize with you because I am out of work as well. But to blame a guy who has been in power for six months, trying to clean up the mess his predecessor made, is insane. Tell me WHO would be able to better handle this mess? ANYONE who is faced with such an insurmountable task will continually be criticized simply because they aren't getting it done fast enough or they way certain people feel it should be done.

And TooTooFunny, that's exactly what you are.

People like the two of you and your divisiveness are the reason why we are stuck in neutral in this country.
Reply to this comment
by Freddie6 July 22, 2009 9:10 PM EDT
So how many bonehead decisions does this guy make until he goes up to the plate? He can blame bush but his health care is his. his Porkulous is his. His "less than 8% unemployment" is his. His "new transparency" with a week review on the internet is his. His "no pork without my line item review" is his. His racist supreme court nomination is his....Now how do we blame bush for all that....maybe the idiots handlers didn't train him to entertain those questions....unfortunately, the press is not asking this clown anything close to that......
by gkantz July 22, 2009 9:18 PM EDT
Are you kidding me, Freddie?

YES, BLAME BUSH, you lemmings. And you call Sotomeyor a RACIST? Are you kidding?

I'm outta here. As Americans, some of you should be ashamed of yourselves.
by bajajohn1 July 22, 2009 10:48 PM EDT
The Obama administration was saddled with a $ 1.3 trillion dollar deficit and a nation on the brink of financial collapse. Yet, you hear this ignorant, redneck racists demeans the herculanean effort to restore financial stability to this nation. The work in progress in knocking down deficits run by the most inept presidential administration in the history of the U.S., deserves accolades, not the mean-spirited hateful comments from a minority of bloggers who are constantly on this channel expousing hatred and venom and dragging the debate into the mudpit.
by skyk-2009 July 23, 2009 7:21 AM EDT
gkantz, I agree... they just seem to have left the world of sanity and went off into never never land. Here they have a bunch of Flaming Racist who are still stuck in the 1800's running their party, telling them OPENLY that the goal of that leadership is NOT to work with the Elected President in addressing this problem but to "Break" our President. NO solutions for the Problem. No idea how to fix anything. They just can't get over the fact that we elected an African American so THAT is all they are concerned with. They are certainly a LONG way from being American YET... A very long way.
by bondsman_dotmac July 22, 2009 9:00 PM EDT
Need it or not the country can not afford all of his agenda, we are spending far more than we have now so we will make it worse.
Reply to this comment
by eightsigma July 22, 2009 9:11 PM EDT
You must not have been listening. We can afford his health care agenda. It's only what the rest of Western civilization is already doing.
by gkantz July 22, 2009 9:11 PM EDT
WHERE are we spending far more than we have? That is a typical conservative Republican response to EVERYTHING. The guy just stated he wouldn't sign a health care bill that would increase the deficit!
Reply to this comment
by mccain08nc July 22, 2009 9:44 PM EDT
I'll put that promise right next to:

No lobbiest in his administration

All bills will be on the internet for 5 days for public review before there is a vote.

He will wait 48 hours before signing any bills

There will be no pork in any bill he signs into law

And so on and so on the man is a pathological liar and you Obamabots eat it up.
by yesnonoyes July 22, 2009 9:11 PM EDT
Hi i am from Finland(there was no international opt.). Stigma of word "social" seems to be big issue there. Our partly social system works great for all our citizens and its alot more efficient than only private system (5-7% less gdp+covers all). Its just common sense if you think about it, private is keeping public efficient and public keeps private costs down. Im not trying to sound arrogant im just saying why not learn from other countries, kinda like we were your guinea pigs and create alot more efficient system? Ofcourse theres oppositon, 5-7%gdp from your money is going somebodys pocket and theres also political points gained here by failure...
Reply to this comment
by W_A_H July 22, 2009 10:18 PM EDT
Sure your from Finland. Putin's my Uncle.
by yesnonoyes July 22, 2009 10:47 PM EDT
Voidaan jutella Suomeksi jos haluat?
We can in Finnish if you like?

Our healthcare is so bad that i cannot be from Finland and be happy for it? Maybe you shouldnt belive everything Fox tells you about our "horrible" system? Funniest must be that our people are dying because waiting lists, baseless lie. Pvt+public system works good here.
by taebok July 23, 2009 5:06 AM EDT
by yesnonoyes July 22, 2009
Maybe you shouldnt belive everything Fox tells you about our "horrible" system? Funniest must be that our people are dying because waiting lists
-------------------------
They same the same thing about Canada and Britain too.
Everyone one who lives there knows it's a lie, but for some reason a lot of Americans believe it.
by Solarrays247 July 23, 2009 10:53 AM EDT
A couple friends of mine just got back from a two week tour of Canada. And because of what is going on here in the U.S., my friends decided to ask Canadians what they thought of their health care system as they traveled throughout the country.

My friends reported that all but one person stated that they were basically pleased with the Canadian health system. The Canadians that were questioned also advised my friends that they are aware of lies and rumors being spread about their system here in the USA. Several people made comments to my friends that based on the fact that the United States claims to be a Christian nation, then why are so many of the US citizens content to allow so many millions of fellow citizens to fall behind and not receive care?

I have urged my friends to write a report on their recent travels throughout Canada, and get it published somewhere in the public eye ASAP to help counteract the outrageous lies and rumors going around in this country!

To all my fellow US citizens who are willing to deny help to our fellow citizens who are in dire need in order to bring down our President ....we will not forget....and we will remember who you are. I have faith in my beloved USA that the truth will prevail, and it is only a matter of time.

It should not take forty years to bring about decent health care for all! It is about time we start living up to our reputation earned throughout the last 200+ years of being innovative and courageous leaders...instead of acting like a bunch of sniveling pack rats!
by jschmidt27 July 22, 2009 9:12 PM EDT
This is what you get for electing a community organizer with no leadership or management experience. The least qualified president in at least 50 years. He's bound and determined to put in the public option. He vilifies Republicans yet every suggestion of theirs is voted down by the Democratic controlled committtees. The public option will eventually undercut private insurance. A year or so down the road some voter will complain the public option is too expensive so Congress to win votes will throw in more money and undercut the public option. This will sink the insurance companies and put all the people on the public option. Then govt can go to work cutting doctors and hospital fees and ration care. The deficit will blossom. Businesses will need to lay off people to make a profit. We need to digitize records, insure everyone through private insurers with subsidies, have employees select the insurers with pooled money from employers; streamline claims processing with unified claim forms and systems across insurers; reduce regulation across states and the Fed. Would the public option be exempt from the state insurance regulations? If so that already is an unfair option. The new plan would get rid of HSAs resulting in an tax increase for all. The govt has done a terrible job running medicare and SS-why would they do a better job with this?
Reply to this comment
by Freddie6 July 22, 2009 9:32 PM EDT
You're right on js....they will unionize the idiots who run the thing, pay them more than our "Pennsylvania Toll Booth Takers", let them go on strike for more while holding our health care decisions hostage to the system....Hopefully, people will open their eyes and see what this idiot has in mind....by the way, I, for one, thing his IQ ranges down in the 100 -110 arena.....and, if I'm right, Who are the handlers????
by econfacts101 July 22, 2009 9:15 PM EDT
Regardless of what President Obama says, my attorneys just went through this 1,018 page bill. Apparently, the President like many in Congress have not read the bill. It basically states that anyone over 70 years of age under this bill is probably in trouble on healthcare. My mother requires a shot that costs $6,200 per month and is presently covered by Medicare. She could not afford it otherwise and would die without it. Under this proposed House Helathcare Bill she will not be eligible for this coverage so therefore will die. That is why I have legal counsel read these things for me. I can no longer support a President who wants to kill my mother. This is very upsetting to me. So here is my message....

President Obama I voted for you but now will fight you! If any of you reading this have parents who are older, you may want to contact your representative and tell them you would like to keep your parents alive and healthy. To do so means those in Congress will have to vote against the present bill. If they vote for it they are signing a death warrant for many of your parents. I cannot believe the Democratic party would turn their backs on the very people who worked for years to elect them, but they have.
Reply to this comment
by jschmidt27 July 22, 2009 9:20 PM EDT
Don't worry Chris Dodd will come it at the 11th hour for that shot for your mom. He'll do this next year when he is up for re-election in CT. So make sure your mom is available for the photo op or she may not get the medication.
Also anyone going for an individual policy has to go with the public option according the law. And I'm glad someone has read this since it is obvious Congress doesn;t nor to the give time to anyone else to read it before voting. This bill will be Dems Waterloo as the public will revolt against it hopefully after the find out the details and the cost.
Good luck to your mom.
by Solarrays247 July 22, 2009 9:36 PM EDT
Great! Did you personally pay your attorneys for this insight? Or did your attorneys contribute this info for free? Have they posted their interpretation on the web? If so, would greatly appreciate their insight!
Link please? Or any other info that would make me believe your BS for even one minute!
by wildview July 22, 2009 9:44 PM EDT
Well my husband has a disorder which requires him to have monthly blood tests and medications every month which total well over $1,500.00. Because of the health care being unavailable we have to move in with his parents just to be able to afford this and at the same time we have three children to take care of. I hope it goes through because I have been uninsured for most of my adult life and as a result have several health problems which could have been nipped in the bud early. I think that most of the people opposed are silver spoon-fed republicans who's parents probably made their fortunes screwing this country out of a future.
by Solarrays247 July 22, 2009 10:49 PM EDT
by wildview July 22, 2009 9:44 PM EDT
Well my husband has a disorder which requires him to have monthly blood tests and medications every month which total well over $1,500.00. Because of the health care being unavailable we have to move in with his parents just to be able to afford this and at the same time we have three children to take care of. I hope it goes through because I have been uninsured for most of my adult life and as a result have several health problems which could have been nipped in the bud early. I think that most of the people opposed are silver spoon-fed republicans who's parents probably made their fortunes screwing this country out of a future.


I'm very sorry to hear what hell you and your family have been experiencing. This is happening to too many people! I have a dear friend who lost her job two years ago, and, of course, her health insurance also. Problem is that she was diagnosed with MS and diabetes about one year before she lost her job. (we think, but can't prove that she was let go because of her health costs). My friend lost everything, her home, her savings, just paying for her medications in order to stay alive! She worked hard all her life, raised four sons by herself after a divorce, got them all through college.

She had to go on disability because no one would hire her with her health problems. She can work fine as long as she has her medications which cost over $3000/month. If we had a public health option, she could be working and earning over %75,000/year, paying taxes, and contributing to society. As it is, if she could even get a decent job now, she would lose her medical benefits through disability/medicare, and would die. We are all paying for her medical care now, whether people want to or not, and she is forced to live in public housing!! She lost her home remember....in order to pay for her medications when it took almost a year to be awarded disability! OUR SYSTEM SUCKS! And I hope your family survives better than my friend did. I'll keep you in my thoughts!
by azure13 July 23, 2009 4:11 AM EDT
econfacts101, you are so full of S***!
by Solarrays247 July 23, 2009 11:07 AM EDT
Hey, econfacts101! I'm STILL waiting for your answer! See my note from yesterday:

by Solarrays247 July 22, 2009 9:36 PM EDT
Great! Did you personally pay your attorneys for this insight? Or did your attorneys contribute this info for free? Have they posted their interpretation on the web? If so, would greatly appreciate their insight!
Link please? Or any other info that would make me believe your BS for even one minute!

STILL WAITING.......
by ObamaGuy July 22, 2009 9:16 PM EDT
Any fair minded person has to admit that the president made the case for the necessity of health care reform, and for his program. It will be deficit neutral and will create an efficient system, with health care decisions governed by doctors and nurses, not health insurance "bean counters". He clearly explained the case for doing nothing, too little or the wrong thing. And, most importantly, he reminded us of a historical reality that he inherited a "nightmare" from Dubya. The Right Wing fringe who are out to "break Obama" and cause his "Waterloo" will throw the McCarthyite "socialism" garbage around, but he has established their argument as hollow. Doctors and nurses will make health care decisions, not for-profit health insurance companies.
Reply to this comment
by gkantz July 22, 2009 9:23 PM EDT
This was the most intelligent comment I've read on this thread. And it has nothing to do with whether I like Obama or not.
by jschmidt27 July 22, 2009 9:25 PM EDT
He made whatever he inherited worse by passing a stimulus no one read that doesn't stimulate. And I can't believe anyone would trust what govt says. As of July 2008 Dodd was still saying Fannie didn't need regulation. So his own party helped cause the problems we have. It was not "all the Republicans fault" as Pelosi said. Once the rationing starts, after private insurance is gone, the govt call the shots on all treatments and says who gets what and what hospitals, doctors and drug companies can charge. With govt having messed up SS and Medicare, you can still trust them?
by CPelzar July 22, 2009 9:32 PM EDT
I have some swamp land in Florida to sell you.
by Solarrays247 July 22, 2009 9:39 PM EDT
by gkantz July 22, 2009 9:23 PM EDT
This was the most intelligent comment I've read on this thread. And it has nothing to do with whether I like Obama or not.

I agree. Intelligent comment and wrap-up! Great post, ObamaGuy.
by yesnonoyes July 22, 2009 9:42 PM EDT
by jschmidt27 July 22, 2009 9:25 PM EDT
He made whatever he inherited...Why would pvt sector go belly up, public and pvt are working well together in our country(Finland), its just alot more efficient. Why this cant work in US?
by jschmidt27 July 22, 2009 9:58 PM EDT
yesnonoyes- it could work if it wasn't for lobbyists amd unions buying votes in this country. So the public option would put the insurance companies under. Money talks in this country and Congress is addicted to it.
by W_A_H July 22, 2009 10:25 PM EDT
Guy,

Healthcare needs reform no doubt. But you don?t nuke the entire industry and the Nation to get it done which is precisely what Obama is attempting to do. Unfortunately he will not be running for the roses on this one or cap & trade either. The pre election promises and the disastrous results tell me he is unqualified to be making any policy let alone for our country. The stimulus results have made me one bitter Hombre because I voted for the man.
by yesnonoyes July 22, 2009 10:28 PM EDT
jschmidt27 so you are willing to pay extra 5-7% gdp and let 20% without healthcare for clearly more inefficient system ? If this is crappy reform you will see it in 3 years and then wont be situation "will Obama have next 4 years?"..it will be "whos his predeseccor?".
by yesnonoyes July 22, 2009 10:32 PM EDT
i mean guy after not before sorry
by azure13 July 23, 2009 4:14 AM EDT
W_A_H...
Exactly what "disastrous results" are you talking about? You people just make **** up. unreal...
by Freddie6 July 22, 2009 9:18 PM EDT
No, pvperson....sorry to disappoint you but am retired, paying a small fortune for the best health care on the planet and I don't want some fool who never held a job, never ran a damned thing in his life, meddling with my health care. I don't need govt to nanny me or my family. the more they stay out of my life, the better!!! Especially this clown!
Reply to this comment
by gkantz July 22, 2009 9:21 PM EDT
Good for you, Freddie. We're glad you're sooooo smart. It's the anger in you that shows through that should scare the rest of us.
by jschmidt27 July 22, 2009 9:29 PM EDT
gkantz- he has every right to be angry just as I am. Many of us are very angry with what has been going on, wasting $787 billion in a stimulus that has produced no new jobs. Or bailing out companies and homeowners who got into trouble because of their own stupidity. The public is getting mad as you can see from the drop in poll ratings. 2010 cannot come soon enough to get this Democratic controlled Congress out the door.
by iam4honesty July 22, 2009 9:21 PM EDT
We can't be spending money for health. We need all that money for war and no-bid contracts.
Reply to this comment
by rhs648 July 22, 2009 9:22 PM EDT
This seems to be a pattern with President Obama. His answer to every problem is to spend ourselves into debt. My brother-in-law had the same attitude until he filed for bankruptcy and couldn't buy a home or a car without cosigners. The trouble with President Obama is how he is mortgaging our future, our children's future, and our grand children's future. If you don't pay taxes or you are willing to let the other guy pay your way, President Obama's spending probably doesn't concern you.
Reply to this comment
by W_A_H July 22, 2009 10:31 PM EDT
Nailed it 648.
by speakinup22 July 22, 2009 9:27 PM EDT
"I don't want that final one third of the cost of health care to be completely shouldered on the backs of the middle class." - obama today, above.

"It will not add to the deficit. I will not sign a bill that adds to the deficit. Period." - obama yesterday with Katie.


I don't see a whole lot of difference between being taxed for supplying health care, (to those that include drug addicts, people that want abortions, the lazy, the uneducated by choice), and having it not affect the deficit.

EITHER WAY, I'M PAYING FOR SOMEONE ELSES CARE.

Gee, and I thought the constitution said "nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation." in the 4th amendment.

Guess that doesn't count if yo are a socialist bastard.
Reply to this comment
by iam4honesty July 22, 2009 9:48 PM EDT
You know, people like you make my skin crawl. What a miserable excuse for a human being you must be. I have no doubt that if a health care program were put in place that gave you better care for less money but also covered those less fortunate you would be squawking that 'if we take coverage away from those people, it will cost you less'. What a creep!!
by cs4466 July 22, 2009 9:30 PM EDT
I'd much rather that my tax dollars go to national health care than for pointless and unnecessary wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Hands down.
Reply to this comment
by CPelzar July 22, 2009 9:36 PM EDT
It is not you tax dollars, rather your Grandchildren's and theirs with Obama spending 10-20 times in 6 months than GW did in 8 years,
by W_A_H July 22, 2009 10:32 PM EDT
What tax dollars 4466? Be truthful....
by wildview July 22, 2009 9:36 PM EDT
Oh my goodness!!! This is crazy. I have never seen a president who has tried harder to actually fullfill the promises he made while campaigning and he is being crucified for it. Things are very hard now, but it is bad all over the world and not because of one man. The economic problems we are having are due to the poor oversight of the banks which screwed us by selling shares to the interest they were planning on raising before thinking about whether or not people would be able to afford them.

Before you start making yourselves look like morons do some research on sites which are not run by bigotted racists who are just mad that the president isn't white. You may find that if people stopped opposing him at every turn that he would probably have a lot easier time bringing this country out of the slum his predicesors set us up to be.
Reply to this comment
by CPelzar July 22, 2009 9:39 PM EDT
Obama is a slick Liar any color he may be, don't care if he is back or white. He is a Liar.
by Freddie6 July 22, 2009 9:44 PM EDT
sorry if the truth hurts, hon.....bama did the stimulous, bama is doing health care (disaster in progress), bama did porkulous, bama will try to do alien amnesty, bama is trying to do the climate bull^&)^&, bama is doing the "thugcheck" aka card check, ......As the mountain of brown gets higher and higher, it will be more difficult to shout over it and blame the guy from a year ago...or do you disagree.

By the way, this guy has improved Jimmy Carter's stature since up to now, I thought (with agreement from many) that he was the worst we have seen since Truman (and yes, I date back to him....)
by jschmidt27 July 22, 2009 9:44 PM EDT
Amazing- anyone who disagrees is a racist. It couldn't be about the money or the deficit or putting our children in debt. It is not about Obama remember- it is about the failed policies of the present.
by W_A_H July 22, 2009 10:40 PM EDT
View,

He's flown the American people on his first policy and crashed. If you think the stimulus is working then ignorance is bliss and we cannot afford another failure because this will be a 100 year failure. I voted for this man. What has he done but trek in reverse all the promises that I heard to get my vote and he got it and now I simply want it back. It's obvious to me that he doesn?t have the experience I thought he would have in basically all areas of policy vertically. I can?t point to one thing that he said he was going to do, promised to do that is being done including allowing us to review these bills before being passed into law. This was a biggie for me and it?s as if everyone forgot about it. Not me and not for a very long time.
by azure13 July 23, 2009 4:15 AM EDT
W_A_H, you are a liar. You most certainly didn't vote for Obama.
by ocreader July 22, 2009 9:40 PM EDT
There is a need for "health reform"...however, when the prez & congress excuse themselves from playing with us, doesn't that make one question their "real" goal? Personally, I think he's a "talking head"....blah, blah, blah! Unfortunately, he has the same type that follow him.
Reply to this comment
by dbaecht July 22, 2009 9:43 PM EDT
I watched every minute and it makes perfect sense. Some of you will never be able to see the forest for the trees, there isn't any hope for you.
People are afraid of change which is understandable but, listen with your brain and not with your emotion.
Insurance companies already make life or death decisions based on money.
The government won't be making those decision, you and your doctor will, which is how it should be.
Reply to this comment
by Freddie6 July 22, 2009 9:52 PM EDT
I have swampland in florida for sale.....if you don't like it, there's a bridge in Brooklyn......
by mccain08nc July 22, 2009 9:54 PM EDT
If you believe the politicians won't medal in you health care then you are very naive. Just as anyone who is on Medicare or Medicaid see if they are not refused simple procedures just because some bureaucrat says it is to expensive.

At least with private coverage I have the option to purchase the plan I want, if i want experimental procedures I can buy a plan that will cover that if I want 0 deductable I cna buy a plan that will cover that. It is my option with government control you will get what everyone gets and the best part is I not only get to pay for my plan I get to pay for my dead beat
neighbor who sits on his arse every day and watches opra.
by W_A_H July 22, 2009 10:41 PM EDT
Get some life miliage under ya db..you'll come around....
by donbl1 July 22, 2009 9:48 PM EDT
what is the urgency with health care?

Don't we have more important things to be working on right now?

Shouldn't we be saving our financial bullets until we have worked our way out of this recession?

Is this an ego thing or real.

Tough to tell.
Reply to this comment
by libsmacker44 July 22, 2009 9:49 PM EDT
by the time the Dems are done we'll be too broke to get back surgery in Canada! sorry i cant afford to pay for my familys medical care and all the illegals too, maybe they can work hard like i do and try not to get taxed to death. time to start stocking up on forceps and hemostats because we'll be doing our own surgeries at home, and its nothing like that childrens game where you just get the buzzer, you can bleed to death and you don't get another turn!
Reply to this comment
by yesnonoyes July 22, 2009 10:13 PM EDT
well you kinda already are, it is just how deep are you gonna go this time. Were still feeling it here from that bank "issue". Hoping that you have learned and would fix this one wee bit earlier than when China decides to stop borrowing to you.
by mccain08nc July 22, 2009 9:58 PM EDT
Obama says he won't sign any bill that isn't budget nuetral

I'll put that promise right next to:

No lobbiest in his administration

All bills will be on the internet for 5 days for public review before there is a vote.

He will wait 48 hours before signing any bills

There will be no pork in any bill he signs into law

He won't raise a single tax on people making less then 250,000 I do know alot of people who make less then 250,000 who smoke and i know he signed a tax increase on cigarettes.

And so on and so on the man is a pathological liar and you Obamabots eat it up.
Reply to this comment
by wildview July 22, 2009 10:43 PM EDT
You don't like it you can choose to quit smoking.
by Freddie6 July 22, 2009 10:00 PM EDT
Nobody seemed to notice the demeanor of the press at this goofy "conference".....I thought they looked like beaten puppies; afraid to ask anything pensive, interesting or otherwise being talked about....Do you think they were scripted or intimidated??? I thought something was amuk....
Reply to this comment
by taebok July 22, 2009 10:02 PM EDT
LOL what press conference were you watching?
It certainly wasn't the same one I had on my TV
by atenas831 July 22, 2009 10:02 PM EDT
I love how Obama says (paraphrase) I'm the president of the United States. I have my own doctor following me around all of the time. I have the best healthcare coverage in the world. I just want everyone else to have healthcare. So he says that HE has the best healthcare coverage in the world--what about everyone else? He didn't say that he wants everyone else to have healthcare.
Reply to this comment
by mccain08nc July 22, 2009 10:08 PM EDT
If Obama thinks this is such a great plan why won't he commit to putting himslef and his familay on it?
by taebok July 22, 2009 10:06 PM EDT
So can any of you people here flapping your gums please point out where I can go read the Republican alternative health care plan?
Anyone? Anyone at all?
Reply to this comment
by Freddie6 July 22, 2009 10:16 PM EDT
Absolutely,,,, go to heritage.com....not too much different than minimal car insurance required in essentially all states. use a menu approach allowing a scope of coverage acceptable to the individual and keep the stinkin govt OUT OF IT!!!!!!!
by mccain08nc July 22, 2009 10:16 PM EDT
So Because you think there is no alternative the rest of us should get behind Obama's socialist agenda.

I believe the republicans are pretty irrelevant right now so all they can do is voice their Opinion of how screwed up of a bill this is. Just as they did with Obama's porkulous bill that was rammed through.

The republicans said it was a mess and would have limited to no effect at helping the economy. Look at how right they were the billions spent on turtle crossing and bridges to saloons has done nothing to create a single job in the private sector and only created or saved very minimal jobs in the public sector.

So you Obamabots keep following this idiot of a cliff as conservatives we will keep voicing our opposition and when Obama is finished screwing things up we will be in control again.

By the way at least when Bush supposed screwed things up it was with a super majority like Obama has everything that happens from now until he is elected out of office he owns. And yes he inherited a bad economy but if he keeps tanking like it is and his great porkulous bill does show some economic improvement in the next few months it will be Obama?s economy.
by taebok July 22, 2009 10:23 PM EDT
by mccain08nc July 22, 2009
So you Obamabots keep following this idiot of a cliff as conservatives we will keep voicing our opposition and when Obama is finished screwing things up we will be in control again.
------------------
LOL Things we're pretty screwed up when he took over no?
You really think people are going to go running back to the Jesus and intolerance party? I don't
by taebok July 22, 2009 10:28 PM EDT
by Freddie6 July 22, 2009
Absolutely,,,, go to heritage.com
-----------
that was a joke yes? that's the most poorly designed website i've ever seen
by wildview July 22, 2009 10:45 PM EDT
Yeah it's called don't get sick and it's been the American health care plan for my entire life.
by Freddie6 July 22, 2009 10:13 PM EDT
no, taebok, i'm serious.....Since it seems to be a well known fact that the bama hadn't even read the bill when he tried to answer a question regarding some facets imbedded in it, I thought maybe the press had been forcefully told "not to embarrass" the maharishi during the press conference. Our press seems to have lost their gonads at the door of his majesty's palace, so I wouldn't be surprised if that tidbit leaks out.....
Reply to this comment
by taebok July 22, 2009 10:20 PM EDT
by Freddie6 July 22, 2009
no, taebok, i'm serious
--------------
Obama has given more press conferences to answer questions in his first few months in office than bush and dick did during their entire two terms... in fact in wasn't until dick LEFT office that he decided to start to give regular interviews... and the only reason he did that was to bash Obama... and bush... well he's still hiding (as per usual)... and the press is holding (or attempting to hold) Obama's feet to the fire WAY more than they ever attempted to do to Bush
by Mortarman29 July 22, 2009 10:44 PM EDT
You are kidding right? The press (besides Fox) is holding Obama Bin Biden's feet to the fire? Do you actually watch the press conferences? It looks like girls college softball.
by taebok July 22, 2009 10:52 PM EDT
by Mortarman29 July 22, 2009 10:44 PM EDT
You are kidding right? The press (besides Fox) is holding Obama Bin Biden's feet to the fire? Do you actually watch the press conferences? It looks like girls college softball.
--------------------
Oh morty morty morty... how soon you forget the conferences W gave eh?
Must be nice to have a memory that's that selective
by jgg00000008 July 22, 2009 10:17 PM EDT
Obama is absolutely clueless. That whole bit about "the blue pill" and your kid goes for a sore throat and ends up with a tonsilectamy is pure tap dancing and shows he has no idea about medicine, hospitals, doctors, nurses, anything having to do with the medical profession. it's no wonder the Mayo Clinic thinks his plan stinks.
Reply to this comment
by Freddie6 July 22, 2009 10:28 PM EDT
amen, jgg......wait till more facits of this "plan" get the light of day....not to mention the fact that, to date, not a single member of congress has revealed any inclination to sign on to the "plan" that they all want to impose on all of us!!!!
by bajajohn1 July 22, 2009 11:01 PM EDT
Two comments from two uninformed, clueless neocons, does not make anything they add to the debate correct. Republicans are going down big time next election. One simple reason: ignorance.
by imprisoncheney July 23, 2009 8:54 AM EDT
bajajohn --

They're one and the same person: Michelle Malkin.

She's so needy!
by hungry1968-16 July 22, 2009 10:24 PM EDT
by taebok July 22, 2009 10:06 PM EDT
So can any of you people here flapping your gums please point out where I can go read the Republican alternative health care plan?
Anyone? Anyone at all?






Yes.

Here are the top five republican proposals:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Reply to this comment
by taebok July 22, 2009 10:29 PM EDT
LOL funny AND true
by Freddie6 July 22, 2009 10:30 PM EDT
go to heritage.com...they will provide you sense rather than nonsense
by Freddie6 July 22, 2009 10:34 PM EDT
and the maharishi needs this approved in 2 weeks after we have survived 231 years without his friggin help.....just tell me how that works....
by taryder July 22, 2009 10:26 PM EDT
Obama says if we don't do this, we won't be able t o stop the deficit. Hey, how about we STOP ALL THE WARS......Gee, WHAT a CONCEPT........Anybody that doesn't think our MILITARY spending is beyond UNBELIEVABLE!!! is living under a rock. I could have sworn that some time ago, Mr. Obama was going to STOP the WAR and THE MILITARY MACHINE......and I do mean MACHINE!!! Not hard to figure out where the OTHER MONEY has gone
Reply to this comment
by wildview July 22, 2009 10:48 PM EDT
Yeah, bring everyone who is making a military paycheck back and tell them to find jobs in the economy now. That will help. Idiot.
by hungry1968-16 July 22, 2009 10:32 PM EDT
by Freddie6 July 22, 2009 10:30 PM EDT
go to heritage.com...they will provide you sense rather than nonsense







As in "The Heritage Foundation"?

The anti-American, conservative, useless think tank?

Why in the world would ANYONE go there, for ANY reason?
Reply to this comment
by Mortarman29 July 22, 2009 10:35 PM EDT
Hungry isnt interested in truth...just propaganda.
by Mortarman29 July 22, 2009 10:33 PM EDT
I would hope that a wise Caucasian man with the richness of his experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a minority who hasn?t lived that life.
Reply to this comment
by taebok July 22, 2009 10:35 PM EDT
I have a hard time believing that you are now running for the supreme court
by Mortarman29 July 22, 2009 10:39 PM EDT
Who said anythign about running for the SC. I was just saying that a wide white guy would more often than not come up with better decisions than minorities that havent lived the white life.
by taebok July 22, 2009 10:45 PM EDT
by Mortarman29 July 22, 2009 10:39 PM EDT
Who said anythign about running for the SC. I was just saying that a wide white guy would more often than not come up with better decisions than minorities that havent lived the white life.
----------
No, what you're doing is hoping someone will take your bait.
Good luck with that.
by Mortarman29 July 22, 2009 10:48 PM EDT
taebok, you believe in the second shooter too, dont you?
by wildview July 22, 2009 10:49 PM EDT
I thought that this wasn't about race
by Mortarman29 July 22, 2009 10:55 PM EDT
Well I guess you thought wrong Wild.
by taebok July 22, 2009 11:25 PM EDT
by Mortarman29 July 22, 2009 10:48 PM EDT
taebok, you believe in the second shooter too, dont you?
------------------
I wasn't alive to see it happen and I don't have access to the evidence, so I can't say one way or the other, sorry.
Keep trying to bait me if you like though, maybe one of these times ;)
by taryder July 22, 2009 10:34 PM EDT
The believe the line no matter what (just like i n Bush days) doesn't necessarily mean that ANYONE that doesn't follow WHATEVER OBAMA SAYS, is a Republican. There are plenty of us DEMOCRATS that can't believe the trillions going away.....In a very short period of time. There is a reason EVERYBODY is UNHAPPY in t his country, except for a select few. MOST PEOPLE are pretty SCARED! To believe what he says when so much that he said during the campaign turned out to be BALONEY and absolutely NOTHING OF WHAT HE HAS ACTUALLY DONE (and of course, so much like GWB!!!) is anything that follows what he said to get elected.
Reply to this comment
by Freddie6 July 22, 2009 10:37 PM EDT
you got it....characterization is wrong, but you get a "C" for initiative...
Reply to this comment
by mccain08nc July 22, 2009 10:39 PM EDT
This is getting old Obama has no leadership ability so every time he wants something he runs around screaming catastrophe, crisis and the skies falling. It must be past right now there is no time to read it just pass it.

This is the same thing he did with his porkulous bill and how well has that worked out for all you unemployed Liberals. Any of you one of the 10 people it took build the turtle crossing in Florida or maybe the 15 it took to rebuild the bridge to the country club and saloon

It is absolutely amazing how lacking in leadership this man is he tries using lies and rhetoric to sell garbage. The only good thing is there was a few democrats with common sense that forced this mess to slow down and now the actual educated Americans are seeing this is a big ole mess Nazi Nancy and Obama was trying to ram down our throats.

There is still the Obama bots out there who will believe every word he says no matter how many times it is proven he is lied but those numbers shrink every day. I even heard CNN pushing the BC situation today (Which I think is bogus) but I just mention because it shows even the press is ending the honey moon for him.

Things will get a lot tougher for him and if his only leadership ability to spread fear and cry the sky is fallen then he will have a tough 4 years. Just ask Bush because that was his leadership tactic how did that work for him.
Reply to this comment
by bajajohn1 July 22, 2009 10:54 PM EDT
You are as stupid as the name you use. Apparently you are so obsessed with hatred of the President, and his efforts to restore America by reducing the deficits, that a Republican administration that left this President with a $ 1.3 trillion deficit and a nation on the brink of financial collapse, that you do not hear the message--that health care reform is a necessity for the nation to remain fiscally solvent. It is not a luxury or a social program. It is a fiscal program. If you love this nation, shut the hole and listen for a change.
by Mortarman29 July 22, 2009 10:58 PM EDT
He is reducing the deficits? Wow, that one takes the cake. He is on schedule to spend more money than all of the presidentst in history...combined!!

And now we will add another trillion to the budget. And you call him fiscally responsible? How in the world do people veer that far from reality?
by imprisoncheney July 23, 2009 9:06 AM EDT
mortyman --

Your crocodile tears of fiduciary responsibility have about as much credibility as the gospel that's preached over at the Fascist Christianity Church on C Street . . .

The one that says that god has "chosen" the weepublicans to rule over us . . .

And who holds up bottom-of-the-gene-pool rejects like Hitler and Stalin as "models" for their disciples to follow . . .

The entire War for Corporate Welfare in Iraq was charged on Communist China's credit card . . . didn't hear you complaining about that . . .

And Medicare Part B was implemented -- with ZERO funding . . . and that didn't seem to be a "problem" for the weepublican prostitutes/lobbyists in Congress back in 2005 . . .

BTW, which one of the Big Biz Mafia do you owe your pathetic job to, hmmmm??? -- defense contracting? Big Pharma? Wall Street thugs? religious mafia?
by taebok July 22, 2009 10:49 PM EDT
by mccain08nc July 22, 2009 10:39 PM EDT
This is getting old Obama has no leadership ability so every time he wants something he runs around screaming catastrophe, crisis and the skies falling
--------------
It always amazes me, the rights ability to take the EXACT things that they themselves do and try to accuse someone else of doing it.

Saddam has WMD's
Iraq is an immediate threat with the ability to strike the United States
We have to go to war!
Doesn't ring a bell?
Reply to this comment
by Freddie6 July 22, 2009 10:49 PM EDT
Geez....maybe I was seeing things then. But I swear, I thought a couple of those "objective reporters" were going to swallow the microphone.....like they were walking on eggs...couldn't possibly ask a tough, penetrating question...where the hell are any journalists in pursuit of truth?? do they all just keep score and try to keep out of the firing line??? I guess old Helen is the only one possessing any semblence of gonads...Poor Walter must be turning over in his grave......
Reply to this comment
by bajajohn1 July 22, 2009 10:57 PM EDT
They are smarter than you are. For one thing, they are following this debate closely. One reporter from the Chicago Tribune, got egg on her face, when she did not know the facts of prior occurrences, just like you do not listen to facts, just criticise in your usual partisan blather.
by searingtruth July 22, 2009 10:52 PM EDT
Indeed, Obama is evil, just like Bush. He stands for and upholds the same unconstitutional violations of humanity as any evil right wing ideologue.

But for political purposes of his own, he is right in advocating health care for all.

I do not thank him for it, but am only glad that at least one humanitarian principle has survived his ascendancy to President.
ST


"We let them suffer and die because they didn't have money."
SearingTruth

A Future of the Brave
Reply to this comment
by Freddie6 July 22, 2009 10:56 PM EDT
golly,,,,,and what do you think of the Patriots chances with Tom Brady this year?????
by bajajohn1 July 22, 2009 10:58 PM EDT
You are sick, get health care!
by searingtruth July 22, 2009 11:03 PM EDT
"golly,,,,,and what do you think of the Patriots chances with Tom Brady this year?????"
by Freddie6 July 22, 2009 10:56 PM EDT


Fellow citizen, I do not follow the fate of sports. Only humanity.

And we are following a far to familiar descent unto the abyss of discount, dissolution, and deceit.
ST


"Our children suffered all we had proclaimed just."
SearingTruth

A Future of the Brave
by Freddie6 July 22, 2009 11:03 PM EDT
if I was sick, i sure as hell wouldn't try the bama clinic....So what about the Patriots???
by Mortarman29 July 22, 2009 11:07 PM EDT
You definitely would not se me or my family at the bana clinic either.
by Freddie6 July 22, 2009 11:07 PM EDT
maybe you do Bosox and Yankees...whadaya think??? Yankees are hot bosox not....could be interesting....
by searingtruth July 22, 2009 11:07 PM EDT
"One day there will be no death and suffering, except that delivered by the hand of man."
SearingTruth

A Future of the Brave
by Mortarman29 July 22, 2009 11:08 PM EDT
Gotta be the Sox.
by searingtruth July 22, 2009 11:11 PM EDT
"Children should not know fear, or death, or suffering, for it is not their lot to know. Theirs is a time for joy, and wonder, and a time of great discovery. Let them never despair, or hurt, or want. This should be our highest calling, and our most sincere dedication."
SearingTruth

A Future of the Brave
by Freddie6 July 22, 2009 11:11 PM EDT
with that i have to sign off and agree....Sox have the pitching...adios and watch out for the idiot in the white house (don't believe a damned thing these fools say!!!!)
Reply to this comment
by taebok July 22, 2009 11:43 PM EDT
by Freddie6 July 22, 2009
(don't believe a damned thing these fools say!!!!)
-----------
don't believe anything you say, got it
by reveal5 July 22, 2009 11:47 PM EDT
No offense Taebok, but you got nothing. And you like to parade it around.
by taebok July 23, 2009 12:08 AM EDT
by reveal5 July 22, 2009 11:47 PM EDT
No offense Taebok, but you got nothing. And you like to parade it around.
----------
LOL well i'll admit i don't have a clue what you're talking about
by searingtruth July 22, 2009 11:23 PM EDT
Tell me, when will the cruelty of mankind end?
?When a single heart of suffering awakens all who sleep.?
SearingTruth

A Future of the Brave
Reply to this comment
by reveal5 July 22, 2009 11:45 PM EDT
Personal care items, pharmaceuticals, and other things will have an increased tax? Wow, why do people just make things up and expect others to take them seriously? Wow! Also, the bill does not cover illegal aliens except for childhood immunizations, perhaps. Why don't people care that Americans are dying? Are you completely devoid of humanity?
by searingtruth July 22, 2009 11:59 PM EDT
Fellow citizen reveal5, you should read what I post.

For I support humanity, at all cost.

While Obama and the Republicans and Democrats only support those who have millions to contribute to their campaigns, no matter the cost to you, I, or our children.

If public health care costs a trillion, or two trillion, or 50 trillion, I don't care.

We can always come up with it when it comes to war, but never when it comes to humanity.
ST


"Humanity no longer lives in America.
Only commerce."
SearingTruth

A Future of the Brave
by joule18 July 22, 2009 11:31 PM EDT
i get tired of Obama rallying his minions by blaming Republicans who are not needed to pass this at all. The Dems have control of both the House and Senate.

The committee who will review this in the Senate is comprised on 25 Democrats and 15 Republicans. So, the Dems basically say sit down and shut up and the public is told the Republicans are against it because they have not plan of their own. They do, but they can't get a hearing on it.

There is no hurry to passing this. I would think Obama would not vote "present" on something as important and actually read the bill himself. There are many troubling aspects to the Bill including no going back to private coverage with another carrier if your current private insurance is cancelled. Your choice then ends and you must join the Obamacare or be fined for not having any.

Pharmaceuticals, personal care items, and other things you now buy will have an increased tax.

If it is not good enough for the Congress and Senate, then why should it be good enough for us?

Reform is surely needed to keep the private sector from increasing insurance costs. However, tort reform would be a good place to start except it won't be included because there are a lot of attorneys who are in the Congress and Senate. Gouging $10 or an aspirin while in the hospitals has to stop.

Obama doesn't know what the Bill contains and I don't trust him to not sign it into law before he does know. I no longer trust his word as he has broken it over and over. It's the Chicago way.

Slow down and do it right if you are going to do it, but don't try to get sympathy on the backs of the Republicans when they are not needed to drive it through.

If the fraud and illegal access to care would end, costs would come down. However, the Bill as it currently sits, includes coverage for illegals.

When are they going to get it through their heads that illegals (not those with green cards, etc.) do not have an entitlement and when they show up to collect welfare, etc., they should be deported and Mexico should be sent a bill for our incurred costs of doing so.
Reply to this comment
by reveal5 July 23, 2009 12:00 AM EDT
I don't think the president thinks everyone is stupid. However if he met you, I'm sure he would indeed regard you as stupid. I have another opinion. Y'all on the fringe are just so "intelligent" that you can't seem to understand anything. Fervan, you obviously fit into this category. Congratulations. Question, did all you frightful right wing antisocialists go thru heart surgery? And they forgot to put a replacement heart in. One things for sure. Y'all are heartless and proud of it. Not an ounce of humility, compassion, or empathy. Completely synonymous with narcissistic personality. The rest of us just can't seem to match your lack of humanity. Blue ribbon to your side for not giving a darn about sick and dying Americans whom insurance companies have kicked to the curb. "Let'Em'Die" ought to be y'alls motto. "Let'Em'Die" and "Good Riddance Sickos". You betcha.
by fervan-2009 July 22, 2009 11:32 PM EDT
Does Barack Obama really think we're all stupid? This guy could never run a company let alone a country. He is the worse thing that ever walked down the pike.
Reply to this comment
by taebok July 22, 2009 11:44 PM EDT
by fervan-2009 July 22, 2009
This guy could never run a company let alone a country.
------------
A country is not a company
And life isn't a business... some people seem to lose sight of that
by searingtruth July 22, 2009 11:34 PM EDT
"The Republican and Democratic parties have delivered us into the hands of darkness."
SearingTruth

A Future of the Brave
Reply to this comment
by reveal5 July 22, 2009 11:40 PM EDT
Yea, he started this whole mortgage crisis about 2 or 3 years ago. You know...like a couple of years before he took office. You betcha. You are sure the smart one!
by fervan-2009 July 22, 2009 11:36 PM EDT
Obama make us healthier? Is he mentally-ill? He is the one who started this mortgage crisis and caused so much grieve and loss of monies from people who worked HARD to earn their retirements. This guy is one thing, EVIL. He really truly does not know fact from fiction and that's putting it mildly.
Reply to this comment
by searingtruth July 22, 2009 11:39 PM EDT
"Truth is defined by the weakest of us who must suffer through it."
SearingTruth

A Future of the Brave
Reply to this comment
by reveal5 July 23, 2009 12:08 AM EDT
You apparently are trying to say something here. Just didn't get the words in the right order? Doesn't actually make sense. The President is actually trying to help the average American. Even the ones who don't have a clue.
by searingtruth July 23, 2009 12:21 AM EDT
Fellow citizen reveal5, you have been deceived.

For nothing in our country has changed since Obama's election, from the illegal detention, torture, and murder of anonymous global citizens, to giving away trillions of dollars to billionaires, while denying basic rights and services to our citizens.

Don't judge by what people say, judge by what they do.
ST

A Future of the Brave
by reveal5 July 23, 2009 12:26 AM EDT
Yo searing. You're nuts. Have a nice day!
by taebok July 23, 2009 12:28 AM EDT
by searingtruth July 23, 2009 12:21 AM EDT
Fellow citizen reveal5, you have been deceived.

For nothing in our country has changed since Obama's election, from the illegal detention, torture, and murder of anonymous global citizens, to giving away trillions of dollars to billionaires, while denying basic rights and services to our citizens.
------------
Actually, I would tend to agree with you.
Politics is like organized crime.
The democrats are the genovese family and the republicans are the gambinos.
It's a two party dictatorship. They compete with each other for dominance, but if an outsider ever threatens their control, they circle the wagons to protect each other.

Which is probably why we'll never see anyone in the Bush admin face any charges, because then the dems would have to admit that they knew more than they are letting on
by joule18 July 22, 2009 11:39 PM EDT
I'm getting tired of the brainwashed lower income Dems who have bought the line that the upper income (rich) are Republicans. Seems to me that it's the other way around, yet you don't seem to mind your rich to feed off the bottom.
Reply to this comment
by reveal5 July 22, 2009 11:51 PM EDT
Illegal aliens aren't covered by healthcare reform.
by joule18 July 22, 2009 11:53 PM EDT
The House version covers illegals.
by reveal5 July 23, 2009 12:03 AM EDT
Prove it. The house hasn't even passed a bill yet. The president has said for two consecutive days that children of illegals may get immunizations. That's it. Otherwise, illegal aqliens are not covered. What do you know about this plan that the president doesn't?
by winstrv July 22, 2009 11:45 PM EDT
No specifics and once again, using fear tactics. If you don't think he is lying, I suggest you look at his statements in regards to the stimulus package. Doesn't the language sound familiar? Dire things are going to happen if you don't pass my program. Sounds like yadda, yadda, yadda. I also noticed no reporter asked him about health care for illegal aliens. Who is going to pay for the health care of the 12 million illegal aliens in this country? Will they get care ahead of our older citizens? Why will they get health care?
Reply to this comment
by frankinaz July 23, 2009 1:44 AM EDT
One hopes Congress decides not to give illegal immigrants health care;
they should pay for their own health care. Better yet, they should go back to their home countries and have those countries pay for their citizen's healthcare.
The legal citizens, especially the elderly and veterans of this country, deserve healthcare ahead of illegal immigrants.
by Freddie6 July 23, 2009 4:17 PM EDT
Right on partner: apparently the "program" is wilting as the facts get out for review. The press is a non-player since they seem willing to sit there and read the script. You gotta give bama and his handlers credit since the intimidation of the press is overwhelming....not a single tough question from the whole damned group....where's Helen when we need her???
by searingtruth July 23, 2009 12:05 AM EDT
"Our last great hope is doing the same as our last great tyrant."
SearingTruth

A Future of the Brave
Reply to this comment
by thusspokezara July 23, 2009 12:14 AM EDT
And we too will have to wander 40 years in the desert when our infatuation with this Golden Calf passes.
Reply to this comment
by User0000isbanned July 23, 2009 5:52 AM EDT
To thusspokezara:

One suspects you've done a bit of wandering yourself ------ maybe a wee bit off the beaten path of logic, with a short dogleg onto a course of full blown delirium?

I suggest a 12 step program for racial bigotry, followed by a course in Aaronic biblical history.

If any single institution or political ideology has encouraged the veneration of wealth ----- and the sacrifice of human life upon the altar of greed -----it is the republican, neoconservative movement. (And I use the word "movement" in its alimentary sense.)

The Iraq debacle itself proves the point: Here was a war of choice, based upon an architecture of lies ----- and all of it, mind you ----- designed to enrich the already bloated coffers of the defense industry and myriad other corporations, thru the no infamous no bid contracts.

4000 American Soldiers returning in body bags? Several hundred thousand dead Iraqis? Piffle. Just the collateral damage one expects from corporate fascist warmongering. quod erat demonstrandum
by rhs648 July 23, 2009 12:15 AM EDT
Wake up President Obama. Both my insurance company and my doctors have encouraged me to use generic medications for years. My copayments for medications are lower whenever the doctors prescribe generic medications. Bottom line! President Obama has not shown us how premiums will be lower with universal health care. In fact, taxes will have to go up to pay for it and to subsidize low income workers and the unemployed. Paying for universal health care by cutting medicare and medicaide is an illusion which uses nothing more than funny math. Unless someone else will be paying your premiums, you will lose with fewer doctors, long waits, rationing, and inferior health care. to think otherwise is to accept lower quality health care or just fooling oneself. And before you accuse me of being a right winger, a Limbaugh follower, or a neocon, rest assured that none of these apply to me.
Reply to this comment
by reveal5 July 23, 2009 12:39 AM EDT
Okeydokey, rhs000. Got it, Don't be saving anybody's life if I have to wait longer in the doctor's office. That's what you are saying. Your doom and gloom crystal ball is, I'm sure, reliably partisan. The thing that is clear is that you do not care in the least that people are dying. End of story. Complete lack of compassion.
by rhs648 July 23, 2009 12:50 AM EDT
by reveal5 - Just telling it the way it is. Someone has to tell the truth even if you don't want to hear it.
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