Robert Gibbs Broadens Health Care Attack, Hits Bill Kristol
An interesting moment at Robert Gibbs’s press briefing today: In a clear sign that the White House sees an urgent need to go on the offensive much more aggressively on health care, Gibbs went out of his way to hit not just Jim DeMint, but Bill Kristol, who is legendary for his 1990s efforts to scuttle reform.
Kristol, who famously advised in a 1993 memo that Republicans had to kill health care reform to ensure their own survival, advised Republicans today to do the same to Obamacare, writing that Republicans should “resist the temptation” to “appear constructive” and instead should “go for the kill.”
Asked today why Obama went on the offensive against DeMint’s claim that health care failure could “break” Obama, Gibbs said:
“I think what we want people to understand are a few things. One, we’ve been discussing this for decades. And the familiar mantra of delay has been the message for many of those years to put off the needed and necessary reforms that have to take place in our health care system. You could just as easily have quoted a Republican strategist today who said to go for the kill and asked opponents to resist the temptation to be responsible.”
A lot of people have been wondering when the White House would more aggressively link today’s obstruction to health care reform to the previous, notoriously uncompromising effort to kill it at all costs. This could be the start of such an effort.
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I hate to keep beating the same old drum but where are the attack ads referring to Bill Kristol’s infamous memo of 1994 encouraging Republicans to vote against Hillarycare because it was so great that the American people would never vote a Republican in office again linking it to his more recent screeds? I mean hell if someone took a day out and taught me how to edit videos online I could put these vids together in probably less than thirty minutes just using stuff you can easily find on youtube. Why can’t people who actually get paid to come up with stuff and do it for a living do the same? Sheesh.
Greg is on MSNBC
The briefing today was AWFUL. Chip Reid of CBS, did his absolute best in defending Republicans on those charges. He stopped being a journalist and started being a partisan. Though, of course, perhaps that started when he said under his breath, a few months ago that “democrats are raising their ugly heads.”
Looks like we have two Chris’s.
Chip Reid is ridiculous. He’s there just to play politics. His line of questioning is to create rifts and stir controversy. He’s what is wrong with modern day journalism. Too caught up in the politics of it all to stop and think for a second how the decisions would affect every day Americans.
Looks like we do, Chris. Sorry, I’m going to post as “Chris A” from now on. Thanks.
There’s plenty of reason to oppose the bill that don’t involve political motivations. For starters, this bill is aimed at keeping healthcare costs spiralling out of control, but noone can say how much it’ll save.
No prob Chris A.
Hawksruleva
That’s because none of the bills are a finished product. They are still working through committees and markups so while they can’t tell you how much it will save the other side similarly can’t say it won’t save money. When we have finished products the CBO and other parties will be able to score the bills and see how much savings will be seen from the bill
sgw–if you email Jed Lewison at Dkos he can put the video together in a jiffy, he is great with those. and what did Greg say? I am not near a tv!
lfo
He was talking about the dustup between DNI Blair and Sen Feingold. Good stuff.
thx SG, appreciate it. all, there should be a transcript by tomorrow AM or something…don’t know if MSNBC posts vid of segments during the day.
…and what did Chip Reid say?
Obama has lost all credibility on this issue. Today he said the health care bill would increase “inefficiencies”. He said the stimulus had to be passed right away to keep unemployment numbers down. The American public sees what a canard that is and suspects the health care being rushed through is more of the same. They along with their governors are saying not just no, but hell no.
@SG: I’m also in FL, and an amateur filmmaker (does editing)…expect an email.
Kate
You can’t name one single Governor who turned down the stimulus. Not one. Well except for the dude who went hiking in the Applachian trail lol.
Oh and Rick Perry is now BEGGING for more money than he tried to turn down in the stimulus bill.
Republicans are the ones with no credibility. Nice try though.
Gibbs is a joke. He should be called on this, but unfortunately everyone in that room is a flaming Democrat – just like our boy Greg Sargent. The problem for the Democrats on this issue is their prescriptions are not popular. The vast majority of Independents and Republicans, at least, know that no matter how many times they are told Canada (or even Cuba) has a better health care system than the US, it is a lie. These people understand economics. Obama clearly doesn’t or else he wouldn’t be pushing for the chance to sign, not just one, but three different economic suicide pacts.
BBQ
I will DEFINITELY be looking out for your email!
He was continuously defending the Republicans all in the briefing room. I’ll quote him.
Here’s the first part of his discussions:
“Q Back on health care and DeMint –
MR. GIBBS: We didn’t leave health care. (Laughter.)
Q We took a slight detour for a moment. He said — just a little more context — he said, “If we’re able to stop Obama on this, it will be his Waterloo. It will break him. And it will show that we can, along with the American people, begin to push those freedom solutions that work in every area of our society.” That’s not pure politics, is it? I mean, he’s saying that we disagree with the President on policy on a whole range of issues where the administration favors government-oriented solution and they favor free market solutions.
MR. GIBBS: What’s his bill?
Q I don’t know, but certainly want free market solutions to these things.
MR. GIBBS: I’ll get Chuck’s answer when you –
Q So any time the President just makes a statement on philosophy, that’s pure politics? I mean, they’re talking about their philosophy. That’s policy. This isn’t political games if — I mean, why should you be surprised that he would like to break the President politically and move in a direction that’s friendlier with his policies?
MR. GIBBS: Well, I think maybe you and I have a difference, as the President does, on the interpretation of what he said. Again, not — you not being able to enunciate for me exactly what it is that Mr. DeMint is proposing in such — as he termed it, freedom-loving solutions — I think denotes that the grasp of what he was saying was a lot less on what he was proposing in lieu of what the President was proposing, and much more focused on the pure and overt politics of this.
Just as I, you know — let me quote somebody else. This is Bill Kristol: “There will be temptation for opponents to let up on their criticism or try to appear constructive or at least responsible” — the temptation to appear responsible. We’ve been asked a lot in this room about what the President and others are doing in order to work in a bipartisan basis, right — when the President calls Senator Grassley to talk about health care reform, when the staff goes to meet with Democrats and Republicans. The President and his team are working constructively and responsibly.
Bipartisanship is not a one-way street. It has to be a two-way, two-lane street. We want to work with people that want to work with us to find solutions for the problems that the American people have faced for years and years. I would suggest that the comments that were made by the senator and by this particular Republican political strategist are not designed to come up or foment an alternative policy solution, but instead to perpetuate the same old Washington games that have –
Q Well, by your bringing them up you’re playing them, — I mean, you’re using them for political purposes. You’re not –
MR. GIBBS: Well, I’m reading what they said, Chip.
Q Yes, but you know that — you know that they’re vulnerable if they look like they’re being political, so you do the ***-for-tat on politics. What’s the difference?
MR. GIBBS: Well, they seem to help a little bit by, say, overtly looking political. I think if I were to call something your “waterloo,” Chip, would that — I don’t think you would interpret that as an effort to do anything other than deride the ability of the end of whatever we were talking about. It’s not an uplifting message. I don’t think people –”
They then discussed invitations and WH policy on bringing people to events. A good off-topic question, but irrelevant.
Sorry, for it being long, but I wanted to capture the gist today.
The gist on Dear Leader’s pasty patsy is that even for a press secretary he is a disingenuous POS. Obama and Gibbs apparently think Kristol or DeMint are so unpopular that it helps to attack them. They are wrong: it’s the socialism, stupid. That’s why you can’t even count on Democratic support for Obama’s agenda. Obama wants this terrible health care reform bill because he wants to grow the government. Basically he wants to adopt the California economic model and let out-of-control government employee vampires do for the USA what they did for the Golden State: suck us dry.
This is why nurses favor the plan and doctors oppose it: the SEIU and other unions are salivating at the idea of this many new, dues-paying, government employees. The fact that Democrats want to listen to the nurses ought to tell you everything you need to know about the Obama dream: the hospitals of America will be run not for the benefit of the patients but for the benefit of the hospital staff employees. Just like the teachers’ unions run the public schools for the benefit of the teachers and other employees, not for the benefit of the students.
Baby Hugo – Don’t spout generalities about scary “socialism.” In fact the AMA (the largest Doctor’s association) ENDORSED THE HOUSE HEALTH PLAN. So, I’m curious, what do you say now?
“Kristol or DeMint are so unpopular that it helps to attack them”
Well, yes… that is exactly what they think and poll after poll has proven them right. Bill Kristol is not the ringing and well backed voiced he was in the 90’s, now he is mostly talking to a back slapping base of about 20-25% of the population. DeMint, being a member of Congress (and even worse, a Republican one) is one of the people that polls have showed that the public trust LEAST while Obama is trusted the most (at about a third of the public) followed closely by doctors. Lucky for Obama’s “gamble” of posturing against the two clowns you seem to want to defend, the AMA which is a proxy for a large proportion of doctors also sides with Obama. If he keeps the pressure up this is his fight to win.
The AMA’s view does not reflect the views if its rank and file members. If this is such a good plan why can’t you get Dems to vote for it? Hint, it’s because not all of them are commies who want to ruin the best health care system in the world out of “fairness concerns.”
Here is something to enlighten you commies about the economics, rather than the emotion.
http://zerohedge.blogspot.com/2009/07/criminally-insane-cliff-asness-takes-on.html
The vast majority of Independents and Republicans, at least, know that no matter how many times they are told Canada (or even Cuba) has a better health care system than the US, it is a lie.
Uh huh.
It’s such a big lie the entire rest of the world’s industrialized democracies all do it in some fashion or other.
The Americans referred to who “know” this is a lie are ostriches with their heads in holes in the ground.
It’s become obvious that the only thing the Republicans in Congress will vote for is war and military equipment, and about a trillion dollars for Wall Street bailouts.
Debra, don’t forget the part where they give away Social Security to Wall Street.
The AMA is an organization that is comprised mainly of docs with nothing better to do than sit on committees. Believe me, My dad, my dad’s dad, three uncles and two cousins are physicians. None of them think Govt. run health care is the answer here. I think everyone recongnizes that we need reform, though. Medicare plus paying for those who are uninsured is what brings costs up for the rest of us. Can anyone imagine how expensive it will be to keep your private insurance once the govt steps in and undercuts costs further?
and for those who think canada & europe have such great systems, please actually go out of your way and talk to someone who lives there. You’ll get a vastly different take on it, promise. I bet they would undo it if they could, but once you’ve passed a large entitlement, it’s hard to rewind.
Govt run health care brought to you by the same people who run the post office and the DMV. Sounds like a great plan!
I would rather not bankrupt this country, thank you very much, as well as saddle my children with trillions of dollars in debt.
Maybe the DMV in your state sucks, mine works fine.
As for the P.O., neither UPS nor Fedex, nor any other private company, will send a letter anywhere in the country for anything like under fifty cents.
And compare the cost of Priority Mail with the cheapest private ground service. No comparison.
And check out the cost of a Post Office Box. It’s half what they’ll charge you for a mail drop at a private “Mail Boxes Etcetera,” or whatever they’re calling themselves these days.
The U.S.P.S. works great and costs much less than its private “competitors.” So why do anti-government wackos always cite the P.O. as some kind of terrible, inefficient Fidel Castro thing? It makes no sense to those of us who actually use the service.
Oh, and by the way, the P.O. subsidizes delivery to sparsely-populated rural areas that consistently vote Republican. Those of us who live in the sinful cities pay more, so Alaskans can get mail service for much less than it actually costs to deliver mail there.
Try using UPS to send your Christmas cards this December. Report back.
Why do statist, pro-government whackos run around telling lies? Because they want us all to work for them; our taxes pay their salaries. Look what they’ve done for California.
Your taxes (if you even pay any) don’t fund my salary, as I run my own small business.
And you obviously know as little about California as you do about anything else, since it’s ANTI-government whackos who’ve ruined my state.