You'd have to be dense not to get what Axelrod and Gibbs were saying. (updated)

ProSense

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Sun Sep-06-09 01:42 PM
Original message

You'd have to be dense not to get what Axelrod and Gibbs were saying. (updated)

Edited on Sun Sep-06-09 02:35 PM by ProSense

GIBBS: The president believes it is a valuable tool. And I think you'll hear him talk about it on Wednesday.

STEPHANOPOULOS: But not essential?

GIBBS: It's a valuable tool and provides choice and competition, something that you'll hear him talk about extensively on Wednesday.

STEPHANOPOULOS: So he -- let me just try to sum this up, then. The president, from what I can hear, is going to make the case for the public health insurance option -- for a form of the public insurance option on Wednesday.

But he is not going to say, if you don't bring me one, I veto the bill.

GIBBS: Well, I doubt we're going to get into heavy veto threats on Wednesday. We're going to talk about what we can do because we're so close to getting it done. He will talk about the public option and why he believes and continues to believe that it is a valuable component of providing choice and competition, it helps individuals and small businesses, at the same time provides a check on insurance companies so they don't dominate the market.

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Even the damn WSJ got the message: Obama to Press Case on Public Option

Updated to add Axelrod's comments:

MR. GREGORY: He said it must be included, David. He said it must be included.

MR. AXELROD: He said there must--he said there must be a, an exchange where people can get insurance at a competitive price. He believes in competition and choice. The public option is a, is an important tool to help promote that where there is no competition. He still believes that. But here's the problem, David. If you don't have insurance today, if don't have insurance through your employer and you need to get a policy, it costs you three times as much, on the average, as it would if you had employer coverage. People simply can't afford it. One of the ways--so we want to create a pool in which people who don't have insurance, and small businesses, can go and get insurance at a competitive price. And a public option would be a valuable tool within that group, that package of plans that would be offered, private and public.

MR. GREGORY: I just want to be clear here because in his statement, he was unequivocal. He said it must be included. A public plan must be included. Is he now signaling that he would compromise on that if you could still have some measure of competition?

MR. AXELROD: Well, first of all, you'd have to take the whole statement. He believes that a health insurance exchange where people can go, small businesses, people who don't have insurance can get insurance at an affordable price is still essential to any health reform and he believes a public option would be an important part of that package. He hasn't changed his view.

MR. GREGORY: This is what the House speaker says, Nancy Pelosi. She draws a line in the sand. She says the following, "Any real change requires the inclusion of a strong public option to promote competition and bring down costs. If a vigorous public option is not included, it would be a major victory for the health insurance industry. A bill without a strong public option will not pass the House. Eliminating the public option would be a major victory for the insurance companies. We have rationed care, increased premiums and denied coverage." Does the president agree with the House speaker?

MR. AXELROD: Well, he certainly agrees that we have to have competition and choice to hold the insurance companies honest. We have to have insurance protections for folks who have insurance, so they can't do the kinds of things that they've done in the past, arbitrarily throwing people off their insurance if they have a pre-existing condition or if they get seriously ill. He agrees with all of that. The idea here is to bring more security and stability to people who have insurance and to help those who don't have insurance get it at a price they can afford. The public option within that exchange is certainly a valuable tool.

MR. GREGORY: The reality is as a political matter, you cannot get Republicans to sign on nor can you get moderate Democrats, maybe 10 or 12 of them to sign on if the president fights for the public option. True or false?

MR. AXELROD: Look, why don't we let the president speak and make his case and then we can have this discussion. I believe that there's enormous consensus around a broad number of issues that would make a great difference for people who have insurance and people who need insurance and we have to build on that. And I think the president will be able to do that on Wednesday night and we'll go from there.

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