White House fires back at Sen. Enzi [View All]

White House fires back at Sen. Enzi
By Sam Youngman - 08/31/09 02:26 PM ET


The White House criticized Republican Sen. Mike Enzi Monday for walking away from bipartisan healthcare talks.

White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said Monday that Enzi “clearly turned over his cards on bipartisanship” after Wyoming Republican blasted Democratic healthcare proposals in the weekly Republican address.

“It appears that at least in Senator Enzi's case, he doesn't believe there's a pathway to get bipartisan support, and the president thinks that’s wrong,” said Gibbs, who added that Enzi had “decided to walk away from the table.”

Gibbs said Obama is still “firmly committed” to working with members of either party if they want “to see progress on healthcare reform.”

He called Enzi's comments “tremendously unfortunate” but illuminating in that it suggests Enzi isn’t serious about reaching a compromise.

Gibbs said he thinks it is “tremendously unfortunately that it looks like Republicans are stepping away from seeking a bipartisan solution.”

“I think it's bad for this town, but it's much worse for this country,” Gibbs said.

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http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/56875-white-house-fires-back-at-sen-enzi