home

Rockefeller Disappointed In Obama's Handling Of Health Care Reform

By Big Tent Democrat, Section Other Politics
Posted on Tue Oct 20, 2009 at 11:54:28 AM EST
Tags: (all tags)
Share This: Digg! StumbleUpon del.icio.us reddit reddit

This is getting interesting. The Obama Administration is trying to be a bystander on health care reform. Some Dem senators are pushing back:

Sen. Jay Rockefeller told CNN on Tuesday that he's "disappointed" that President Obama wasn't more forceful in pushing the Senate to include a public option in its health care bill. "A little bit, a little bit I'm disappointed," the West Virginia Democrat told CNN's Wolf Blitzer. "I know he's strongly for it, and I know his tactic has been to let the Congress do his work and then he'll come in when the crunch really counts. What I'm saying is that the crunch is really beginning to count now, and I think he's - I know he's for it, and said so publicly, and campaigned on it, so I think it's important that he come in at this point strongly."

Whether Obama likes it or not, he has skin in the public option game. Some Dem Senators will not take the hit for Obama the way Dodd did on the compensation restrictions for AIG. I expect Harry Reid will be doing this too.

Speaking for me only

< Time For Obama To Step Up On Public Option? | Is Obama's Dithering Hurting Chances For HCR? >

  • The Online Magazine with Liberal coverage of crime-related political and injustice news

  • Contribute To TalkLeft


    • Display: Sort:
    Rockefeller Disappointed In Obama's Handling Of Health Care Reform | 11 comments (11 topical)

    Readers Must Login or Create an Account to Comment

    He's just trying to emulate Bush (5.00 / 2) (#1)
    by Faust on Tue Oct 20, 2009 at 12:04:11 PM EST
    Remember how he was all laid back on privatizing social security and cutting taxes for the wealthy? Remember how he just let congress do its thing?

    Oh wait...

    If Barney Frank and Chris Dodd (5.00 / 1) (#4)
    by oldpro on Tue Oct 20, 2009 at 12:11:40 PM EST
    can't stand up, what does that say about the state of leadership among the Dems?  It's all up to Nancy?

    Why is Dylan relevant? (none / 0) (#2)
    by Stellaaa on Tue Oct 20, 2009 at 12:08:12 PM EST
    "You have to serve somebody..."  

    Even up to the last minute, we do not know which side he is on.  It's called commitment.  

    snowball's chance in hell comes to mind (none / 0) (#3)
    by Bornagaindem on Tue Oct 20, 2009 at 12:09:13 PM EST
    Obama has never been for anything in his life except Obama.

    Well, if so...you gotta admit (5.00 / 5) (#5)
    by oldpro on Tue Oct 20, 2009 at 12:16:26 PM EST
    he made that strategy pay off.

    Zesus.  Look where he is!  With a Nobel Prize, yet!!

    So, why would anyone change a strategy that successful and awesome?

    Parent

    I'm disappointed in Rockefeller's fake (none / 0) (#6)
    by tigercourse on Tue Oct 20, 2009 at 12:17:23 PM EST
    disappointment.

    I'm having a hard time (none / 0) (#7)
    by lilburro on Tue Oct 20, 2009 at 12:22:53 PM EST
    imagining when Obama thinks crunch time begins.  Does it begin when the Senate doesn't pass a PO, but the House does?  Because that makes things way harder than they have to be.

    Rockefeller joins a rather large (none / 0) (#8)
    by Anne on Tue Oct 20, 2009 at 01:02:30 PM EST
    group of disappointed people out here in the real world; our outside-the-beltway 20-20 vision has allowed us to see the Grand Bamboozle for what it is.

    Having now had this epiphany, what Rockefeller and all of his fellow Senators have an imperative to do is provide the leadeship that is lacking; if Obama wants to be President Speed Bump, it's time for the Congress to stop treating him like he's holding a stop sign and just go over or around him.

    I would challenge (none / 0) (#9)
    by Wile ECoyote on Tue Oct 20, 2009 at 04:47:37 PM EST
    them to show leadership and sign up for the exact program they want to foist on us unwashed.  They will not give up their gold plated insurance.  

    Parent
    completely agree with Mr. Rockefeller.. (none / 0) (#10)
    by genesis45 on Wed Oct 21, 2009 at 01:37:09 PM EST
    that he cannot stand up for what he believes in is, to  me, a sign of weakness that will cost him very dearly.  The majority of Americans want a public option - we are sick&tired of the current system, it just simply does not work.  Except for the wealthy and the very poor. Obama, please stick to your guns...

    Disappointed, too... so far. (none / 0) (#11)
    by JohnRJ08 on Wed Oct 21, 2009 at 02:10:50 PM EST
    I'm disappointed, too, although my guess is that he is waiting until he sees the final, combined Senate bill before stepping in. If there is an alternative to the "robust public option" that will get passed by the Senate, he should at least see it before pushing back. Maybe there isn't anything better than the public option. But I think we have to give the President the benefit of the doubt here. Right now, all the nut case conservatives are a little baffled by Obama's neutral posturing on the public option, and I see that as a good thing. That said, when push comes to shove, he better end up on the right side of this issue or he's going to lose a lot more voter support than he thinks. Nearly 2/3's of Americans favor a public option, and that figure goes even higher when you describe the option as being like Medicare. If Obama plays politician here in the name of getting a "bipartisan" bill, he will be putting the Democratic Party in a terrible position in 2010. Hopefully, he knows that.

    Rockefeller Disappointed In Obama's Handling Of Health Care Reform | 11 comments (11 topical)

    Readers Must Login or Create an Account to Comment