2 Aministration officials: Sibelius mispoke...

According to http://politics.theatlantic.com/2009/08/administration_official_sebelius_misspoke.php

At least 2 of 3 asked. The third stated the press misinterpreted.

So the President still believes Public Option is the best way to implement reform. eom.

on any same page as the White HOuse.

Your crosspost from GD..

andym (1000+ posts) Sun Aug-16-09 10:36 PM
Original message
Administration Official: "Sebelius Misspoke."
http://politics.theatlantic.com/2009/08/administration_...

An administration official said tonight that Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius "misspoke" when she told CNN this morning that a government run health insurance option "is not an essential part" of reform. This official asked not to be identified in exchange for providing clarity about the intentions of the President. The official said that the White House did not intend to change its messaging and that Sebelius simply meant to echo the president, who has acknowledged that the public option is a tough sell in the Senate and is, at the same time, a must-pass for House Democrats, and is not, in the president's view, the most important element of the reform package.

Thank you for posting.

SUCK THIS CHUMPS! ADMINISTRATION SAYS SEBELLIUS MISSPOKE. SUCK ME. ALSO, YOUR FAVORITE TEAM BITES.

Apply suction, somewhat reactionary individuals. Those in power have indicated a poor choice of phrasing. Apply suction to me, and also, your choice in competitive sport masticates.

Chow down defeatists.

Washed down with KoolAid! :evilgrin:

And the kool-aid.....well everyone knows about me and the kool-aid.....

Though she declines the other invitation.

Seriously, this is not a good time to "misspeak". Her head should roll.

for folks to keep reacting to every little thing Obama or his admin say till AFTER they have a bill to actually consider.

Sorry, but I think "wait to see what happens" is really bad advice when it comes to politics. If people want to influence things they should never wait to see what someone else does, they need to push them to do what needs to be done. People should react to what our public officials say, if the public officials misspeak that is their fault not the fault of the people who reacted to what was said.

'Believes the PO is the best way' is what the article says.



Sounds to me like Obama is backing away. Sounds like he knows the Senate doesn't have the votes to pass the public option and he's preping us for the bad news.

to he believes it is the best way to implement reform. which better reflects the wording of the article

The comment is pure political spin -

I want a public option, but I may not be able to get it and so, there is still other stuff we might get. This is just a teeny piece (a sliver is a tiny piece - a sliver of pie is what you ask for when you don't want a whole piece).

Sorta like yelling "Surprise" at a party too soon. :rofl:

They'll ignore it.

People have every right to react to what a public official says, if Sebelius misspoke that is her fault not the fault of the people who reacted to her.

but atleast you got your wimpy k and r in before reply 230


and you and I can trade insults for an hour to keep this thread on top!!

I been drinking your kool aid. I mean milk shake.

Eating your lunch.

Fuck. I'm confused.

I came into this thread because I CARE ABOUT THE CHILDREN THAT READ THREADS ON DU


DON'T YOU GIVE A FUCK ABOUT THE CHILDREN EXCEPT TO DRINK THEIR MILKSHAKE?


kicking the thread one more time.

And male pattern baldness. Or female pattern baldness, as the case may be, if anything about your profile is real, because you may be a 'Bot. Or a drone. Who can say??

:shrug:

By the way, did you take care of that rash???


KICKING THIS THREAD AGAIN, AND KICKING grantfart WHILE I'M AT IT!!!!

The official said that the White House did not intend to change its messaging and that Sebelius simply meant to echo the president, who has acknowledged that the public option is a tough sell in the Senate and is, at the same time, a must-pass for House Democrats, and is not, in the president's view, the most important element of the reform package.


and is NOT, in the president's view, the most important element of the reform package.....

The problem with this....It IS the most important part of the reform package. A real public option is the only way to 'keep insurance companies honest' as Obama likes to say. THAT is why they have been fighting it tooth & nail, and they have been vested in destroying it. Without a public option, we are getting private insurance mandates, and this is NOT acceptable.

The President's dismissive language over the weekend was what troubled me the most, NOT Sebillius comments.

Read my journal for exact quotes from the President and links.

This morning we were attacked for believing the AP and Reuters stories. Tonight the White House is saying that Sebelius misspoke. I wonder what we are going to hear in the coming days and weeks.

Your point is well taken, and it further supported by Obama referring to public option as a sliver.

There are more options than "public option", and "private insurance".

There's co-ops, private insurance grants funded by public dollars, non-profits supported by public dollars, GSE's, hybrid plans with baseline public coverage (but managed via private plans), etc..

Reducing the issue to one or the other is a failure of imagination.

for someone in her position, and for someone who served one and a half terms as governor.

what the fuck the President ACTUALLY wants?

Or, she knows but just wanted to spice up the debate? Or energize the base? Or fake out the opposition?

Somebody help me here.

One should not have to play mind games to figure out, if he will demand a real public option.

I could live with some negotiated political maneuvering but this communication breakdown / confusion is all messed up and looks like shit.

so that should leave us all warm n'fuzzy. not.

It's real simple, Mr. Prez. A clear statement. No ambiguity. No wiggle room.

No public option = veto.

"OBAMA ADMIN READY TO ABANDON PUBLIC HEALTH CARE OPTION"

And, do some house cleaning.

The Health Secretary represents the White House on all healthcare issues.

So put the blame on Sebelius for not getting her shit straight, for misrepresenting her boss's position! And then, maybe put some blame on Obama for his putting an insurance commissioner in charge of healthcare, instead of Howard Dean!

had shoddy reporting.

not the HuffPost. They accurately reported what Sebelius told them.

everytime an Obama official misspeaks or screws up.

Maybe they heard Rachel Maddow warn them this morning on MTP that he will have wasted his political capital if he betrays Progressives by not supporting a viable public option.

the next time an Obama official misspeaks or screws up as related to the public option.

Basically, the entire base believes a single payer plan is the best idea and were willing to compromise on a strong public option. It's a bit much to ask us to compromise further when we are a large part of what gave Obama his majorities in the Congress.

to see if outrage over losing a public option had waned.

I think the outrage was probably louder this time than the last time it looked like they were going to throw the public option out.

I was thinking the same thing. At this point, nothing would surprise me.

Cause I don't see why not!

:hi:

off bullshit! LOL! Seriously.

:sarcasm:

something awhile back but can't come up with the circumstance.

Nothing against everyone who's suggested that the Sebelius statement may have been a trial balloon.

BUT, I've already read posts of concern that ask "why would they want to test the waters on this? something's up!!!"

Well, ya know, maybe it isn't a trial balloon maybe it is.

I happen to think she spoke poorly and that if the administration wants to check how people feel about the issue they aren't going to send out a cabinet member to deliberately differ from what the president has said.

That seems amateurish and unnecessary.

I can't believe the drama...

He has said he's willing to be a one-term president if that's the cost of going after this.

How many Congressfolk and Senators have been willing to see his bet?

the votes aren't automatic by any stretch, which many have been trying to explain all along. Of course, I guess if one could seriously and honestly believe we are at a point in American history were Single Payer could reasonably be expected to pass then anyone that could tie their own shoes could shepherd through even the brawniest public option. So, I do think that folks need to stop flailing and crying about fantasy and help us to accomplish what we can do help as many as we can and to help our country stay above water enough for the next generations to have a chance to do better.


I do also wonder what the hell do people think changed overnight and isn't there some level of jumping to conclusions from seeing the comments.
It was off a redirect and a one word deal, one component is the answer we wanted since there is a wise and fair effort to shift some focus off the option because it is in truth not the majority of the plan which is really more of a story of regulation, modernization, and subsidies/vouchers. The option is a crucial piece of this to be certain because it is acting as the control element and a mechanism to make sure if the other 80%+ failed to take that we would have a baseline to compare results and an escape boat to bail to if regulation doesn't get them in line.

I understand the logic that views the option as the key component but it is dishonest, incomplete, and piss poor tactics to make out like the option is the plan.