Did Obama Decline To “Express A Preference” For Public Option Last Night? White House Official Clarifies
Today’s New York Times reports that President Obama declined to “express a preference” in a private meeting last night when Harry Reid signaled his intention to put the public option in the final Senate bill. This may not sit well with public option supporters, who have already been questioning Obama’s commitment to their cause.
But I just checked in with a senior White House official, who offered a bit more clarity and detail, and this isn’t what it seems. For public option supporters, this one is not as bad as it sounds.
The Times reports that when Reid signaled “his inclination to add the public option to the bill,” Obama “asked questions, but did not express a preference at the meeting.”
But the senior White House official points out that the discussion was not about the public option in general. Rather, Reid was specifically raising the possibility of a public option with an opt-out clause as one potential route. On this specific policy option, the official says, “the White House did not state a position either way.”
And that’s as it should be, the official continues, because Reid has not made a final decision to take this route. So the White House wouldn’t be expected to take a position on it. Whether to go with the opt-out is “largely a question of legislative strategy,” the official says, and should be left to the Senate leadership to determine first whether it’s the best way forward.
The White House official adds that Reid was not even asking for Obama’s endorsement of the idea and instead was “just going through options.”
Public option enthusiasts, on this point, at least, you can rest easy.
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Update: In retrospect, I shouldn’t have stated as outright fact that this official’s account is the truth.
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What about triggers Greg? I read in Politico(I know) that Obama discussed Snowe’s triggers.
I’m anxiously awaiting the outraged diary on DK about the NYT report. Should be amusing.
“you can rest easy”
And I am. Thus allowing me to note a headline at the Weekly Standard blog this morning…
“Breaking: Palin Supports Hoffman”
Mr. Sargent:
“The White House official adds that Reid was not even asking for Obama’s endorsement of the idea and instead was “just going through options.”
Public option enthusiasts, on this point, at least, you can rest easy.”
You have a pretty bad case of the “policy wonks” bud.
Next you’ll be trying to read facial cues of Obama’s when someone speaks the words “Public Option” for tells.
BTW, you never DID answer my question if you have health insurance and if you are happy with it.
I kinda figured thats what went down but its only because the NYT and WaPo and most other national outlets have been so terrible at reporitng on the public option that I have little to no faith in what they say now.
On the issue of NY23, its a case study in why next year won’t be as good to Republicans as some people think. There is absolutely no doubt that people like Sarah Palin and the Club for Growth are all but guaranteeing that what should be a safe GOP seat will now go to a Democrat and they don’t even care. That phenomenon will not be going away. These folks have convinced themselves that they aren’t the fringe and that if only they put the biggest wingnuts ever up for a vote then they will retake both Houses of Congress. Watching them melt down is going to be so very satisfying for me.
“And that’s as it should be, the official continues, because Reid has not made a final decision to take this route. So the White House wouldn’t be expected to take a position on it.”
Bullshit. The WH has been involved in this thing from it’s inception. But now they’re hanging back because Harry Reid is so masterful in the Senate? I repeat–bullshit. Also, the issue of having states opt-out is a huge factor in the actual efficacy of the legislation. For Obama to have no opinion either way is simply beyond belief. I don’t know if this is due to the WH’s deal with Pharma or for some other reason, but I do not buy this line from the WH.
I’m home this am and looked in on Morning Joke at 8 on. Arianna and others were on. Valerie Jarrett was up and was asked about the President’s “lack of clarity” about the Public Option and the source of this was provided: Mike Allen of Politico. Yes, Halperin’s alter ego and breathless purveyor of Dridge Sludge.
Jarrett affirmed that the President supported the PO: no ifs ands or buts. She provided some details of the discussion. My guess, Greg, is that you need to have some salt at hand when your sources tell you what happens at these WH meetings.
Almost every major news outlet I peak in at, (MSNBC, CNN, NYT, and the Post) is so eager to be the first to declare the public option dead (as Chuck Todd did not 10 minutes ago) that it isn’t even productive to watch.
Every day that I’ve watched Morning meeting I see Chuck Todd trot out to declare the public option dead (and of course he never specifies which version he is talking about), and then carry on to say how this that and the other won’t be passed. Then I’ll log online and within a few minutes find evidence of growing or unrelenting support for a public option and whip counts that are within the margin of error of passage. The media really is a circus, I don’t know how they take themselves seriously.
Chuck Todd is the quintessential purveyor of Beltway CW: breathless and often wrong.
I suspect Obama doesn’t really care whether the Senate puts a public option in their bill or not. Nor does he care whether it has an opt-out, trigger, or National Private Health Insurers’ Day. What is far more important is that the House pass a good public option, that it gets added to the conference report, and that Dem Senators don’t dare vote to filibuster the final bill. What goes on in the Senate in the meantime is all about Harry Reid’s reputation. Obama, I suspect, considers it far more important that any Senate version gets passed as quickly as possible.
Mike Allen at Politico is carrying water for Baucus and Snowe IMO. He was pushing the trigger story today and that as far as I can see is pretty much dead. No point in doing a trigger when the trigger has not only been disqualified; but AHIP has signaled a major rate hike for individuals coming. The ads write themselves.
I think we’re going to get a public option with an opt-out and hopefully Pelosi will be able to push the robust public option so we’ll have a robust public option with an opt-out rather than the Schumer plan with an opt-out when we come from conference.
Mike Allen, however, needs to clarify his story. Valerie Jarrett came on Morning Joe and flat out laid it to rest IMO and seemed pissed.
You can’t pass major legislation like this with a President who doesn’t seem to give a flying f%#@. I predict the whole reform effort is about to blow up.
Today’s Rasmussen poll of adult likely voters:
http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/obama_administration/daily_presidential_tracking_poll
Obama’s approval up 2% to a -9 spread.
But reported that 49% responding would rather no health care bill at all to what is in the Congress now.
And Gallup’s adults shows Obama at 51% approval,
http://www.gallup.com/poll/113980/Gallup-Daily-Obama-Job-Approval.aspx
But as with Rasmussen, 49% skeptical of what HCR will do.
Funny, a few weeks ago, Gallup had the breakdown as 25% favoring, 33% against, and 39% undecided on HCR.
Looks like the undecided have broken against.
Bilgeman, how does it feel to have health care shoved down your throat?
Do you feel yourself gasping for air?
Man… What happened to Chuck Todd? He was so awesome during the primaries. It’s like he got replaced by a pod person when he got promoted.
The meme seems to have coalesced around Obama not being strong enough for the PO without triggers or opt-outs, whether thats the reality or not.
mike from arlington:
“Bilgeman, how does it feel to have health care shoved down your throat?”
Ain’t a done deal yet, mike. Not by a long shot.
Why, Mr. Sargent’s very next entry is about Libs trying to pressure Rahm to make the Alleged Hawaiian put HIS head on the chopping-block for PO.
If he’d supported it, there’d be no reason to nag him, right?
You’re doing your “end-zone” dance while the ball is still on your own 30 yard line, hot-dog!
“Do you feel yourself gasping for air?”
Not at all…you? In fact, I feel pretty good. Did you catch this bit of news from the Fishwrap Daily?
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/10/22/AR2009102204708_pf.html
Creigh Deeds is in the weeds! And the Obots are already blaming him for his own trainwreck.
But gee, how very embarassing! DNC Chairman and Vajanya Guv’nah “Eyebrow” Tim Kaine can’t even keep his own state Blue.
Pity Party BEGIN!
I think the White House and congressional leaders are just leaking this stuff so that they can gauge how far they can push progressives before they break. There’s no need for anyone to be leaking any info that is detrimental to the progressive cause at all. If anything, they should merely be leaking that everything is going swell…but they aren’t. You have to wonder why.
sbj:
“You have to wonder why.”
Well, see chum, there are these blogs like Plum Line that breathlessly report that Obama is/is not/is again/ never was/ might be/ probably/ definitely won’t/maybe so
support this or that feature of the HCR bill.
A few days ago, there was a “Snowe Report” on this sidebar…moonbats loved her for voting the Baucus bill out of committee, today that “Snowe Report” is history and she’s back to being a Rethuglikkkan unperson.
The Plum Line is a HCR PO Nag-A-Thon.
How can this issue NOT leak? Staffers and principals prolly just tell people like Sargent things to get him to STFU and let them get on with the imporatant business of ******** over each other’s constiuents to benefit their political backers.
You know…”compromise”.
Right wing extremists like bilgewater are against providing health coverage to Americans because he’s chosen corporate profits (corporatism just being a polite word for f*scism) over the lives of over 44 THOUSAND Americans.
Why do you hate Americans so much that you would let over 44 THOUSAND AMERICANS DIE every year, bilgewater?
“corporatism just being a polite word for f*scism”
Mucho irony here, since ObamaCare is indistinguishable from fascism’s economic model: a heavy Government hand, a ‘vampire economy’ setup that allows private corporations to exist as pawns of the Governmental control scheme.
So proggies are pushing for a fascist ObamaCare healthcare plan that wont solve the uninsured problem (as most analyses have pointed out), yet adds enormously to costs, thereby worsening healthcare for millions and destroying much-needed jobs … and they are reduced to ad hominem attacks on the wise skeptics of this lunatic approach.
And btw, if you are against deliberate policies that Americans die on a daily basis, then get off your duff and become a pro-life activist, fighting against the daily murders of the unborn. or is innocent life too anti-progressive these days?
This healthcare bill is solely about Democrats accumulating power for themselves and the various bureaucracies and constituencies they represent, while ******** those they oppose as badly as they can. Study after study is showing that it wont ‘bend costs’, it wont cover folks well, it magnifies costs shifts, it will kill jobs, it will ration healthcare and kill off granny, and it will speed the pending bankruptcy of federal entitlements.
Why are proggies pushing such a pile of horsemanure and acting like its a magic pony?
“Bilgeman, how does it feel to have health care shoved down your throat?”
Shove it proggies, shove it. … The American people will reward the arrogance and destructive partisan extremism of the leftist Democrats by defeating Democrats soundly in upcoming elections.
Right winger Patrick, where were you for the eight years under Republican President Bush while he was handing billions (and through the back door of the Fed, trillions) to his corporate cronies?
Where were you, Patrick, when the Fox Republican Channel became an indistinguishable arm of the Republican run government?
Where were you, Patrick, when the Republicans systematically handed their corporate buddies everything they asked for (and even some things they didn’t)?
Oh, that’s right, Patrick was cheering on the rise of corporatism.
Fascism is when the corporations run the government.
Under Republicans, corporations run the government.
Therefore: Republicans are _________.
When did keeping Americans alive become so controversial?
Answer: When it cuts into predatory corporations profit.