Obama seeks support for the Health-Care Bill in Ohio
House Democrats wary of the Senate health care bill find themselves in a quandary.
Now that the Senate parliamentarian has made clear to Democrats that they won’t be able to take the path they had considered to get a health care bill passed, they must ask themselves: If we vote for the Senate’s bill, do we trust the senators to make the changes they say they will?
Hoping to prod health-care legislation toward the finish line this week, President Barack Obama pitched his overhaul proposal in Ohio Monday, saying the debate over health care transcends politics.
“In the end, this debate is about far more than the politics,” Obama said in remarks prepared for delivery in Strongsville, Ohio. “It’s about what kind of country we want to be.”
The House of Representatives is expected to vote later in the week on health legislation. While the White House has expressed confidence that the measure will pass, it is still unclear if it can convince enough wavering Democrats.
Obama repeated his call for a “final up-or-down vote” on an effort that could shape the remainder of his presidency. He again rejected Republican calls to scrap the pending proposal, referring to Natoma Canfield, an Ohio woman who complained in a letter to the president that her insurance premiums were rising at a pace she couldn’t afford.
“When you hear people say ’start over’–I want you to think of Natoma,” Obama said. “When you hear people saying that this isn’t the ‘right time’–think of what she’s going through. When you hear people talk about who’s up and who’s down in the polls, instead of what’s right or what’s wrong for the country, think of her and the millions of responsible people–working people–being hurt by today’s system of health insurance. And I want you to remember: There but for the grace of God go I.”
The White House chose to hold Monday’s rally in Strongsville to highlight Canfield’s situation. Canfield, however, couldn’t attend the event because she was diagnosed with leukemia on Saturday.
“I’m here because of Natoma,” Obama said.
She is a housekeeper. I want to know if she pays income tax on her earnings. Bet ya a cookie she hasn’t.
Also, if she couldn’t afford to keep her policy when it was $500/month, how is Obama’s discounted group policy going to help her? She still wouldn’t have been able to afford it, she still would have dropped the coverage and she still would have needed the operation on the taxpayer’s dime.
Look, I don’t like paying for my health insurance either. No one does. But it’s important to so I and millions of other Americans pay our premiums monthly. Would I like to keep the monthly premium and instead buy a large screen tv? Or go on a cruise? Heck yeah, but that would be a bad move. Hard to feel sorry for someone who knows she is at risk, drops her coverage and then…boo hoo…can’t afford the operation. I agree that coverage can be expensive, but heh, here’s a new concept for those who need more money…get a second job! (Here ya go – try this: http://www.Professions.Com )
C’mon! Why are we wasting our time on this? Don’t we have two wars to fight with Iran building a nuclear bomb?