 |
|
February 10, 2012
Lisa M. Krieger: Man with defibrillator demands access to his own heart's information
David G. Savage: Why activists may not be in a hurry to have High Court rule on alternative marriage
February 9, 2012
Laura McMullen: 10 Least Expensive Public Schools for Out-of-State Students
Kimberly Palmer: How to actually enjoy -- relaxing, financially -- your vacation
February 8, 2012
Warren Richey: Why momentous Prop. 8 ruling might not satisfy gay-rights groups
Menachem Wecker: Though Controversial, LL.M.'s Can Lead to Specialized Legal Jobs
The Kosher Gourmet byDana Velden: Going to the bother of making soup? You know it better be good. This CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP certainly is! And it's a cinch to make, too (Includes techinques and serving secrets)
February 7, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Caught off-guard? President's Super Bowl interview with Matt Lauer gives those who need a reason not to vote for him, a darn good one
Suzanne Bohan: Leaping lizards! Tiny reptiles advancing robot design
February 6, 2012
Jonathan Tobin: Iran Threatens Israel With Destruction, But the New York Times Doesn't Hear It
Jeffrey Fleishman: In newly democratic Egypt, tens of democracy activists jailed, to stand trial; their groups are 'threatening the stability of the homeland'
Julie Deardorff : Researchers say antioxidants may not be that effective and could do more harm than good
Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
February 3, 2012
Edmund Sanders : Israeli official says Iran is creating missile that could reach East Coast of US
Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
Meg Handley: Banks Revamping Rewards Programs to Woo Customers
January 27, 2012
Caroline B. Glick: Obama: Of course I intend to prevent a nuclear holocaust . . . in a few months
Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
Ed Koch: To the New York Times, calling for the murder of Jews by those capable of having their incitement taken seriously isn't news
Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
Jordan Rau: In quest to grow, Catholic hospital system will announce this morning its break from church
Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
January 18, 2012
January 17, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
David Francis: Where to Invest in 2012: With stocks expected to rebound, opportunity abounds for investors
January 13, 2012
Ben Lynfield: Israeli lawmakers move to annex Jewish Judea, one museum at a time
Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz: Thriving through touch: Gentle massage helps older people with low mobility improve in mind and body
January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
Warren Richey: Supreme Court says no to new rule on eyewitness testimony
John Fauber : Statins found to raise diabetes risk in postmenopausal women
Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
The Kosher Gourmet by Joseph Erdos: This mushroom and barley soup has an intense -- almost nutty -- flavor that mixes robust with Middle East. It has creaminess without cream
January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
|
| |
Jewish World Review
Sept. 9, 2009
20 Elul 5769
Time to Stop the Health Care Tease
By
Roger Simon
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
Each desk in the West Wing of the White House should have the same sign on it as the staff helps the president prepare for his health care speech on Wednesday: KISS.
Keep It Specific, Stupid.
This is no time for a lofty speech. We do not need inspiration. The time for inspiration has passed — the time for perspiration is at hand.
Even though the speech will be before Congress, this should not be a State of the Union Address with soaring flights of rhetoric.
We need to know what the president wants. Specifically.
We need to know how he is going to pay for it. Specifically.
We need to know what he will accept and what he will reject. Specifically.
Nobody likes a tease, and it is now time for the White House to stop teasing about health care. If the president truly is committed to a public option, he should say so. Plainly. Flatly. Finally.
The public option is not, by the way, what the left wing of the Democratic Party wants, as some have charged.
The left wing of the Democratic Party wants a single-payer plan like Canada has. The mainstream of the party — the Democratic wing of the Democratic Party — wants a public option. Obama used to be part of that wing. We'll learn Wednesday night if he still is.
The reason for a public option is the one that Obama stated to the American Medical Association on June 15: "You will have your choice of a number of plans that offer a few different packages, but every plan would offer an affordable, basic package ... one of these options needs to be a public option that will give people a broader range of choices and inject competition into the health care market ... (to) force waste out of the system and keep the insurance companies honest."
The public option keeps the insurance companies honest because it provides competition. Without the public option, the health care industry gets a huge bonus — 46 million new customers — but doesn't have to operate any better or less expensively.
Why is there confusion? Because in August, Obama said at a town hall meeting in Grand Junction, Colo.: "The public option, whether we have it or we don't have it, is not the entirety of health care reform. This is just one sliver of it, one aspect of it."
So is the public option just an expendable sliver or the driving force behind true health care reform? No wonder people are confused. But the confusion can end — must end — Wednesday. Wednesday, Mr. President, is time to say what you mean and mean what you say.
And here is one other piece of unsolicited advice: Don't worry about winning over the crazies and the weasels. The crazies will call you a socialist, fascist, Hitlerite, Stalinist — and born in Kenya, to boot! — no matter what you say. Forget about them.
And forget about people like Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley. A Republican, he had committed to work for bipartisan reform but went to a town hall meeting in Winterset, Iowa, and told the crowd it had "every right to fear" a government plan "to pull the plug on Grandma."
If you look up "weasel" in the dictionary, you'll see a picture of Grassley.
Obama's commitment to bipartisanship does not include a commitment to getting stabbed in the back. If the Republicans don't want to climb aboard on health care reform, they can stand by the side of the tracks. Either way, the train can still leave the station.
But before it can, the president has to state plainly how he wants to pay for it. By taxing health care benefits? By taxing "Cadillac" plans only? By taxing people making more than $1 million per year? By taxing those making more than $250,000 per year? Tell us. We need to know. The president should not try to sugarcoat the cost of universal health care. That cost is going to be massive: Ten years of health care for every American probably will cost us what we have paid for the Iraq war up to now.
Which would you rather have?
And even though it may seem impolite to go to Capitol Hill and talk about executive power, the president should tell members of Congress what he will accept and what he will veto.
That is not arrogance. It is leadership. It is what we need.
What we don't need Wednesday night is a speech up on the mountaintop, lost in the clouds.
We need a speech down in the trenches, filled with gritty specifics and, yes, a line in the sand.
As the old saying goes, if you don't stand for something, you will fall for anything.
It is time for President Obama to tell us what he really stands for.
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in Washington and in the media consider "must reading." Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
Comment on Roger Simon's column by clicking here.
Roger Simon Archives
© 2009, Creators Syndicate
|
