High-stakes balancing act woos left, right, center -- and seniors
WASHINGTON -- President Obama's health care speech before a joint session of Congress on Wednesday night was designed to appease critics on the left and right, appeal to the folks in the middle who just don't want to go broke if they get sick or find insurance impossible to buy because they have pre-existing conditions, and calm nervous seniors who worry about their Medicare.
The speech was a magnificent balancing act, with Obama looking for the deal, telling the public that he's not going to sit around and let Congress do nothing.
(AP)
"We will meet," Obama said at the end of the speech, "history's test."
The president -- a former senator -- had been reluctant to weigh in very heavily until now, preferring to let lawmakers do their thing, fearing a replay of the Clinton-era health care reform push where Congress resented the Clintons telling them what to do.
But Obama's team, concerned that there was a real chance Congress would do nothing in the wake of heated, sometimes hysterical town halls this summer -- decided now was the time for Obama to use that bully pulpit of his.
In the high-stakes speech, Obama appealed to Democratic progressives to let up on their insistence on what has ripened to be a deal killer: a public insurance option. The progressives who threw themselves into Obama's presidential campaign have been disappointed that Obama was not going to the mat on this.
"To my progressive friends, I would remind you that for decades, the driving idea behind reform has been to end insurance company abuses and make coverage available for those without it. The public option -- the public option is only a means to that end, and we should remain open to other ideas that accomplish our ultimate goal," Obama pleaded.
"And to my Republican friends, I say that, rather than making wild claims about a government takeover of health care, we should work together to address any legitimate concerns you may have."
Obama tried to woo conservatives by embracing a catastrophic-coverage plan proposed by Sen. John McCain. He threw a bone to Republicans who focus on the medical malpractice issue by saying he would -- "today" -- direct his administration to implement pilot tort reform programs crafted by the Bush administration.
A surprise message from the late Sen. Ted Kennedy -- who is remembered for making health care the "cause of my lifetime" -- in the form of a letter to Obama to be read after he died let Obama wind up with an emotional appeal. If the liberal lion could work across the aisle, so could everyone else.