Obama's Press Conference
He's good. You forget that when you haven't seen him in a while. He seemed entirely in command, not at all rattled by the toxic political dust storm swirling in Washington. His answers were supple, substantive. The questions were pretty good. The key point that he hammered was the ugliness of the status quo. "If you heard there was a plan out there," he said, that was guaranteed to double your premiums, cause more Americans to lose their coverage and create larger budget deficits over the next 10 years--would you vote for it? "Well, that's the status quo."Some other points:
1. He wants a plan that will cover 97-98% of all Americans. He wants an individual mandate. (And I think this means he's intending to cover legal immigrants, always a point of demagoguery for Republicans.)
2. He did not say, as Chuck Todd just insisted, that he would pay for it via a surcharge on families with annual incomes over $1 million. He did say that sort of proposal was acceptable, although he still favors paying for it with a reduction in the tax deductions allowed wealthier Americans. By the way, it was striking to me that he did not rule out increased taxes for the middle class. He merely said that he didn't want the program "primarily" or "mostly" funded by the middle class. He also didn't rule out taxing corporate health benefits. (You have to listen to these things carefully. I'm not saying that he intends to tax the middle class or corporate health benefits at all, just that he left a lot of wiggle room about how to pay for the program.)
3. He made a strong case for a public option as a way to keep the insurance companies honest and noted that some insurers were making record profits while raising premiums at a time "when most Americans are getting hammered." But he didn't insist that the public option had to be part of the plan, just that he thought it was a good idea.
4. He emphasized over and over the notion of what OMB Director Peter Orszag calls "game-changers" --changing the incentive structure for doctors away from fee-for-service toward a more results-oriented system using the data gathered by the new electronic records system being created. This, clearly, is how Obama thinks he'll be able to reduce costs over time. He's undoubtedly right that it will help, but no one knows how much it will help.
Again, the ease, fluency and grasp of detail--and the ability to use vivid examples that made this complicated subject accessible to most Americans--made this an impressive performance. No wonder the fellow was elected President.
-
1
" .. the ease, fluency and grasp of detail.... No wonder the fellow was elected President. .."
Aha. I hate to douse your fires of enthusiasm. Remember that we are the very ones who elected one POTUS named GWBush#43, aren't we?
And remember that the founding fathers didn't have much faith in the wisdom of the voters: They wouldn't leave the destiny of the nation to the whims of the masses and so they created the electoral system to show us the 'right way' in case hillibillies get carried away ...
-
1.1
cfuk- Unless you were one of the 5 justices in the majority on Bush v Gore, then you had nothing to do with electing GWB as the 43rd president.
-
-
2
fatty Joe K. I told you..take your fat liberal biassed a$$ over to Kos. Nobody takes you seriously anymore..your infatuation with Obama is embarressing to your profession..and you have the audacity to criticize Kristol..what a fat hypocrit
-
2.1
You really don't get this English language thing, do you, chippy?
-
2.2
Sarah, is that you? Put down the blackberry and go to bed already. Todd's getting restless. And watch that pottymouth....
-
2.3
More like "ilikepaintchips."
-
2.4
Funny, calling someone fat who has time to sit here and make ridiculous comments all day, who's name is "ilikechips."
Get over it.
-
-
3
Did somebody say Chuck Todd?
~-
3.1
We certainly should Chuck Todd.. and Grassley too.
-
-
4
Surprisingly, the questions weren't totally idiotic, except that one bimbo who was banging on the "transparency" drum. Geez these people are cliche, aren't they? Where were these a$$holes while George W. Bush and Dick Cheney were upstairs secretly planning, authorizing, and executing torture programs? Sitting around at their cubicles waiting for press releases, background briefings and special invitations to ask a question. No "Adversarial Tone" in those days.
Chuck Todd did better this time, though.
The President certainly has a grasp of the issue, doesn't he? Poor WHPC, their eyes were probably spinning at such nuance. Already Helene Cooper is complaining that the answer to the first question took 8 minutes. Poor thing. Too long! Too much answer!
-
4.1
Chuck Todd did better this time, though.
Chuck is not all bad. He is just is not a traditional reporter and is ill suited for that type of role. His real effective role on MSNBC would be to replace uncle Pat. Chuck is an analyst at heart. He can explain things from all sides. Some times that can irate people depending on what side he is break down. But it is a necessary role in the media.
-
4.2
Chuck is like an idiot savant analyzing an electoral map. Unguided genius. But analyzing politics is like an ant analyzing a picnic for Todd. Pure Peter Principle (see: John King).
-
-
5
Is there an opposing view / rebuttal going on now (similar to after State of the Union) – to defend besieged insurance giants? Who would be speaking, that gecko, Sen. Nelson, or Flo the insurance saleslady?
-
6
"the first question took 8 minutes."
I do kinda of miss the answers from the former POTUS that were almost long enough to fill out an entire bumper sticker.
Those were the days.
-
7
Chuck Todd explains things away, rather than clarifying them. His appearance with Glenn Greenwald made that abundantly clear.
-
7.1
Juniusredivivus, his exchanges with Glenn Greenwald make me think Chuck Todd is nothing more than another Villager apparatchik.
Prosecute crimes committed by a Republican Administration??? Horrors.
Katharine Weymouth will never invite you to a party.
And that's it for your career in D.C. Chuckie knows the rules all too well.
~
-
-
8
Smoke 'em out!
Bring it awn!
Dead or alive!
Terra! Terra! Terra!
Catapult the propaganda! (oops. 8 syllables.)
OB/GYNs practicing their love upon their patients!
There's an old saying in Tennessee.....
-
8.1
"Fool me once, shame on me. Fool me twice....watch out for the oth'r guy."
-
-
9
I came away from President Obama's press conference with a similar opinion to Joe Klein's.
What struck me this time was the wiggle-room he left regarding the potential taxation of tax brackets other than the very wealthy. We'll see what he's got in mind, but speaking as a middle-class American who's lucky enough to have a relatively stable job, health care and a savings account, I would not at all mind paying more in taxes in order to help those of us who are less fortunate, so long as I knew that my additional taxes were being well spent.
But what always strikes me most is the thoughtfulness with which this President answers questions, and while he always manages to get his talking points in (which in itself is an admirable feat, politically-speaking), he makes a genuine effort to actually answer questions and is able to explain things in a way that most people will understand, without talking down to anyone.
It's a feat that few people in public life have ever been able to pull off. And I fervently hope that he succeeds in reforming health care. We're about 30 years behind the curve, and as a proud and somewhat competitive American, that bugs me.
-
9.1
what struck me was the wiggle room that he left himself on everything. Joe does an excellent job of detailing it, while refusing to acknowledge that the bottom line of the press conference is that Obama is not committed to health care reform, he's only committed to getting a bill passed that is called "the Health Care Reform Act."
Being opposed to the status quo isn't sufficient -- leadership requires more than the word "change", it requires specific plans and directions. Obama's lack of leadership experience is coming home to roost here -- and the American public are getting rolled by the health care parasites with a huge assist from the GOP obstructionists (but the problem is not with the GOP, its with the Democrats who are running the show and selling out to the special interests.)
Obama will probably get a bill passed -- but its going to be the health care equivalent of "No Child Left Behind" -- a well intentioned, but ineffective and counter-productive "reform" effort.
-
-
10
The Kable Klownz apparently hate it. Good!
-
11
Let's cut to the chase here on healthcare reform. While there are numerous ways rigging savings out of healthcare, the problem is that with any cost cutting endeavor the biggest bang for the buck is cutting labor costs: aka job elimination. And, we all know this is not going to happen, so immediately any reform, either dem or rep, isn't going to save real money.
-
12
Le's see...individual mandate...apparent' willin' t' deal out th' public option...no mention o' single-payer...I be no' impressed. No' surprised, bu' no impressed neither. More'n anythin' it be tellin me 'e seems 'e be on board wi' th' sell-out.
Pretty words, just nothin' bu' pretty words!
Green Party 2012!
Yarr!
-
12.1
I agree,
More like the prepped spokes person of the "Socialist" take over committee than a Patriot. He's not selling us out, he never was one of us to begin with. -
12.2
Jeebus, PW, don't you have more than one string on that harp?
Single-payer is not on the table for one very good reason; it is not achievable. Not only would it not get 60 votes in the Senate, it wouldn't get 50 votes in the Senate, and would not get a majority in the House.
Now, if the public option works like I think it will, it will slowly morph into single-payer by default; the insurance companies won't be able to compete and they will shift focus to providing supplemental plans.
-
12.3
I don't be seein' th' public option workin'. I see it bein' extreme limited an' expensive t' guarantee failin'.
yarr. -
12.4
Then you need better eyes.
Medicare covers arguably the most expensive health care consumers in the mix, and does so at a tenth the cost of private plans. Anything organized remotely along the same lines will most likely have the same efficiencies. Even if they hogtie it with restrictions like Part D, they still won't be able to compete.
-
12.5
Medicare be havin' some serious cost problems tha' they be havin' trouble containin'.
Be th' public options under consideration open t' any individual who be wantin' t' choose 'em?
No.
Be they open t' any employers/businesses lookin' t' lower their costs an' pr'vide better cov'rage fer their employees?
No.
Which public option under consideration be ye talkin' 'bout? Details, me lad, details.
Tell me who be goin' t' be allowed t' participate in th' public option, an' under wha' conditions...it be no' lookin' good fr'm wha I be seein'.
These "reforms" be set up fer th' benefit o' th' health insurance industry - plain an' simple.
I don't be understandin' 'ow anyone be readin' 'em an' no' seein' tha'.
arrgh.
-
12.6
An' yer medicare numbers be more'n a might off, on th' optimistic side.
Yarr.
-
-
13
The talking heads on CNN, like David Gergen, are criticizing Obama for being too intelligent on the health care issue, and as a result, losing people. I guess Obama needs to find a way to make health insurance easier to grasp, so even the idiots on TV can understand it. Maybe he can reduce it to 3 baseball analogies?
-
13.1
Not sure I want touch baseball analogies after the RW saying he threw like a girl at the All-Star game (still upset at FOX for botching that shot angle!), I'd rather he stick to his milieu of basketball and analogize that way. But yeah it's gonna have to get broken down into smaller bits so folks who only watch American Idol and are still in mourning over Michael Jackson can be made to understand this.
-
13.2
The health discussion was fine for the American people. They needed the sanity of his clarifications so they can go back to ignoring the idiot pundits who scared them with declarations that health reform and the Obama administration was dead.
It's the pundits that didn't understand the purpose and David Gergen seemed perfectly content talking about Jackson -- frankly he ought to go back to that.
-
-
14
The one thing I am absolutely sure about is that if we want to point to one reason why our country is so screwed up we need only to look in one direction towards the main stream press.
Whether its the reporter class that needs lessons in effective listening so that they can learn to restrain the filter that distorts what is said into what they pretend to hear or its the analyst class who are consistently wrong on darn near everything. Sometimes I think that if it wasn't for stupidity there would be no brain activity at all.
The media, dealing with the summer doldrums, and always in need of an adrenaline pumping frenzy are maxed out on Jackson, Palin and the entire C Street clan chose to work themselves into a lather about the death of health care reform. They demanded that the president speak to the issue and yet when he does they can't take yes for an answer.
They need to throw away the blackberry's because the continuous loop of emails that feed these ridiculous frenzies is on the verge of destroying the country.
Obama did just fine with the people he was speaking to -- the voters who were growing anxious because the national chicken little corps were running around telling them that the health reform sky is falling. And what are they carping about? That the president wasn't running around as panicky as they are.
Thank God that during the campaign every time the press thinks he should go to the right he keeps his own counsel and heads for the opposite direction. God save us from nervous nellie Democrats wringing their hands and the reporters who love them.
-
14.1
Obama didn't do "fine" -- his refusal to take a stand on anything (other than being against the status quo) turned all his "intelligent" answers into doubletalk. Everyone already understands the need for reform -- we don't need eight minute answers for that. What we needed was concrete proposals that Obama was committed to, and eight minute explanations about why those specific ideas were the best ones to implement.
-
14.2
Wha' plukasiak said!
Fer cryin' out loud - I don't be gettin' wha' all th' enthusiasm be based upon! It be li' we're a bunch o' dogs reactin' t' a tone o' voice! Th' fact tha' th' words bein' said in tha' soothin' tone be an insultin' screw- job don't seem t' be registerin' - were this an incidence o' masterful mass hypnosis???
'Ere's wha' th' whole thing seems t' be amountin' to:
1. Everyone will be havin' t' give money t' th' insurance corporations.
2 In th' event they be no' havin' enough o' their own, th' government will be givin' some MORE money t' th' insurance corporations.
3. Those who be really too poor 'r otherwise unable t' be convincin' insurance corporations t' be takin' their money be allowed t' participate - MAYBE, IF IT DON'T GET DEALT AWAY - in th' so-called "Public Option".
4. Those people be so expensive t' cover tha' th' whole "Public Option" be costin' so much as t' be doomed t' fail.
5. Th' big winner in th' whole deal? HEALTH INSURANCE CORPORATIONS!
An' THA'S wha' ev'ryone be so excited an' confident 'bout???
Blast it t' 'ell, we be criminal easy t' bamboozle!!!
YARR!
-
14.3
I were even goin' back t' read th' transcript o' th' whole shebang, thinkin' tha' most 'ere be so flamin' gushin', I must o' been missin' somethin'!
Nope - no' missin' nothin' - I honest' no be understandin' wha' were said t' be so bloody excited 'bout!
If someone'd pr'vide some specifics tha' be warrantin' th' enthusiasm, I'd sure be appreciatin' it! I be pret' much havin' lost most o' mine (enthusiasm) as far as "reform" be goin'.
Sorry fer th' "hand-wringin'", bu' I just don't be gettin' it.
Yarr.
-
-
15
He talks to us as if we were adults and, for that, I am so grateful. Of course it helps that I agree with him 97-98% of the time!
Now we have to act like adults, too.
-
16
Lots of negative commentary from every pundit on every channel on the Obama press conference tonight. The same pundits who thought he lost every debate to John McCain. Remember that? The majority of the American public disagreed with them then, and, other than the Fox News crowd, will probably agree with you, Joe.
This President has a firm grasp on the health care debate. He's smart, he's been through it, but he is not going to show his cards and weaken his bargaining position. Yes, he wants a public option, but he's not drawing a line in the sand. He takes the long view, which most of us don't. Call me naive but I trust the guy to get this done.
PS-JK, you should be jonesing for KT's comment section. They like her more than you. That's what you get for speaking the truth.
-
16.1
Chief Monday-morning quarterback: Tweety Matthews, who tells us the president didn't do a good enough job telling us exactly what Tweety thinks we need to be told. Ignoring direct statements, misrepresenting Obama's campaign commitments, analyzing the politics from a 1980's perspective – "Hardball" continues to deteriorate into "America's Got Hyperventilating Ego Queens."
-
-
17
Reminded myself why I don't watch cable news- immediately following the end of the presser Tweety states that the story tomorrow won't be health care but instead his mention of "racial profiling" in relation to the Gates incident. Matthews sounded pretty excited to suggest an impending racial unrest. Bleh.
-
18
I think this means he's intending to cover legal immigrants, always a point of demagoguery for Republicans.
Of course Democrats refer to the 45 (or 47) million Americans without health care on an almost daily basis, even though 10 million of those aren't Americans at all. But the point is to throw out a big number.
Funny how Joe never notices the demagoguery on his side of the aisle.
-
19
anon76 " .. Unless you were one of the 5 justices .. you had nothing to do with electing GWB as the 43rd president. .."
Ahem.
Buddy, what do you have against the good old American way?
We go all over the world trumpeting the vitrtues of our democracy, our rule of law, our governance - and all the good things American and yet here you are drowning us good American hillibillies in insecurity complexes!damm.
We elected GWB#43!
And that is what I say and I am sticking to it![And BTW, why only '5 justices'? All the nine justices are 'wise' and hence they should arrive at the SAME conclusion, right?]
-
20
I think KT mentioned the other day how much impact it has when Obama calls a senator and asks them to vote a certain way -- it's the same for me when he speaks live or does a presser. It cuts through all the hyped up cr*p we hear all day and allows us his POV unfiltered and humane. Gives me a glimmer of hope, be it small, that things might just be okay. That is, if I kill the TV before the talking heads start in.
-
21
Of course the cable pundits didn't like. Their entire reason d'etre is to protect the status quo.
I'm always impressed that Obama still believes this nation can achieve greatness. I wish I shared that belief, but it sure beats the deliberately small-minded cynicism of the GOP and the cable news jerks.
-
22
But we're also going to have to change health care. Otherwise, we can't change that $7.1 trillion gap in the [Federal deficit].
Yes! That needed to be said.
-
23
Watching the pundit reaction, I have to wonder if Obama isn't purposely exposing our most serious social fissures both on race (see: Pat Buchanan and Chris Matthews) and class (see Howard Fineman and Chris Matthews) and making people choose sides to isolate the racists and elitists from the rest of us. Pass the popcorn, please.
-
23.1
Watching the pundit reaction
You're made of sterner stuff than I am.
-
23.2
" .. Watching the pundit reaction ... Pass the popcorn, please"
At a time like this!
While the sky is falling over our heads?
Who are you - emperor Nero reincarnate?
-
-
24
I watched the news conference this morning (UK time). I thought he was impressive, definitely a little bit frustrated with the way the debate had gone, but clearly someone on top of the issues and with a clear path forward. I then read some of the news sites and found that they all thought he was vague, boring, not a salesman etc. Rachel Maddow even went so far as to say he didn't have enough soaring rhetoric to argue a moral imperative to do. I can't understand that.
Obama has always been about outcomes rather than ideas. As he said he will do what works. It makes perfect sense to me that the President articulates what he wants to see and leaves the detail to congress to work out. Of course that depends on having a congress genuinely interested in solving the problem; which apparently they are not.
Speaking as an Englishman, if you guys can't get it together to pass meaningful healthcare reform when you have a President who speaks so clearly and passionately about this, when you have a country crying out for change, there is really no hope for America as a country. Nothing, and I mean, nothing will ever get done save for some tweaking round the edges.
A final thought, and maybe controversial (and please bear in mind that I would love to see prosecutions for torture etc.): does anyone think this process would be any easier if there were ongoing prosecutions of members of the Bush administration?
-
24.1
It's about the entertainment value and the level of effort required. If our personality "reporters" were to do the modest digging necessary to debunk the overheated anti-reform rhetoric there would be less justification for putting lying weasels like Eric Cantor on camera to spout demagogic nonsense. That, in turn, would require more reporting on substance in order to fill the programming day. – and that's not gonna happen. On American teevee at least, fireworks will trump homework every time.
-
24.2
If you guys can't get it together to pass meaningful healthcare reform when you have a President who speaks so clearly and passionately about this, when you have a country crying out for change, there is really no hope for America as a country.
I think this still comes as a shock, because most of us think of America through a post-War prism, but: There really is no hope for America as a country. We're heading inevitably toward banana republic status, with the rich on top and the poor on the bottom and the middle class a distant memory.
-
-
25
The White House hopes people tuned in for the knock-out opening statement...and then turned the TV off for the very wonkish and uninspiring Q&A.
- TIME The scoop on Google Buzz from @techland | http://su.pr/1zDlZ6 - 3 hours ago
- TIME Are the bible stories true? Evidence from archaeology | http://su.pr/2ekoPX - 4 hours ago
- TIME Why is NBC pretending Conan never existed? | http://su.pr/4Pbjbh - 5 hours ago
Most Popular »
- Undercover Boss Is Phony and Manipulative. But Don't Hold That Against It.
- NBC: There Was Never a Conan O'Brien
- NH Poll: Dems Face A Thumpin'
- Gibbs Mocks Palin, Tea Party Convention
- Barack Obama: Then vs. Now
- Paul Ryan Won't Run For Prez In 2012
- Today's Health Care Checkup - GOP Plans Under the Spotlight
- Irony of the Day
- Do You Spend Less than $2,000 Annually on Internet, TV, Cell Phone Service, and Video Games?
- CO Gov Poll: Hickenlooper +4
- Asian Carp Battle: Foreign Fish Threaten Great Lakes
- Is the Bible Fact or Fiction? Archaeology's Discoveries
- Spain's Troubled Economy: Fears Over Euro Zone Outlook
- Kennewick Man, Archaeology Find: Who Discovered America?
- Al-Qaeda, Yemen, Wedding: Unlucky Name, Celebration
- Tea-Party Convention: Lessons on Palin and the Movement
- Venezuela: Chavez Protests at Ball Game Over Electricity
- Jim Frederick, Black Hearts in Iraq's Triangle of Death
- Marja: Operation Moshtarak Tests Obama's Afghan War Plan
- Why China Needs The U.S. -- And Vice Versa
Quotes of the Day »
RSS