Obama: "If private insurers provide the best quality healthcare as they say they do, then how

[Lex]

could a public plan run them out of business, especially if as they say, a government run plan would be so awful?"

[Bluzmann57]

1. Makes sense

How dare he make sense. What's the matter with him?
And somewhere, ceo's of health insurance companies are seething right about now.

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

2. He's doing a really good job on health care in this presser.

I'm feeling pretty positive.

[Rabrrrrrr]

3. I love that man. He's so wonderful at calling the bluffs and the bullshit.

If for nothing else, I'm glad to have him because it's time, after 30 years of fucking insanity, for SOMEONE in leadership to show the country what THINKING looks like.

[Oregone]

4. Much stronger rhetoric today

I think someone read the polls, so in the end, people will get their public option, whatever thatll end up being. No matter, I think the real test will come in 3-5 years when people can really compare costs and see if vast improvements have been made.

[tridim]

5. He is KO'ing the insurance industry today

This is amazing!

Expect the lobbyist/GOP rhetoric to go nuclear tomorrow.

[KittyWampus]

8. can't watch. quick post but do you think he's let the insurance co's & Repubs spew talking points

and is getting off his haunches to finally go in for kill?

That has been his M.O. in the past.

Am hoping that's why there's been so little push back on health care public option debate.

[Puzzler]

36. Indeed it has been his MO

[johnfunk]

10. True political rope-a-dope. Obama's been WAITING for the right time to nail them

Grab the popcorn. Insurance whores lobbyists and the GOP will go nuclear. As in meltdown.

:popcorn::evilgrin::popcorn::evilgrin::popcorn::evilgrin::popcorn:
:evilgrin::popcorn::evilgrin::popcorn::evilgrin::popcorn::evilgrin::popcorn::evilgrin:

[JimWis]

19. Yup. He really set up the insurance companies didn't he. If we

get the public option in place, insurance will have to compete, they will have to ante up on the promises they made awhile back.

[bridgit]

6. Either way they're not going to be 'run out of business', they just want ever-more money...

locked in and guaranteed. Having said that, these services are vital and are being dispensed by conscientious medical professionals by & large. My concern is that we may sooner see not just a tiered *access* to health care; but tiered levels of effect i.e. one person flies to a liver transplant off a short list cause he's rich...while another is persuaded to wave now with four fingers fused together after an auto accident cause it did not occur to the ortho surgeon on duty to care to turn your popped out knuckles round the other way to retain some articulation; or that someone's coverage will not authorize the extra time

[Cleita]

7. Well, for one thing they aren't providing health care, the doctors and

hospitals are. The public plan is about getting them paid for their services and the government is superior in doing that. I know. I have Medicare and I have never had a claim denied by them. The insurance companies have a shoddy record in that regard so whatever it is they are delivering it's not quality health care.

[RobertSeattle]

9. The "CEO" of the public plan will only make $200K a year -vs- 20 Mill

So how could he possible be as smart and brilliant and spiffy as the private insurance CEO?

[Canuckistanian]

18. It's not a hard job

All they would have to do is make sure the checks get to the doctors.

That's the sole responsibility of a government health care administrator in a public system.

[Occulus]

24. **NO** CEO has a "hard job", ever

I could do the job of the typical CEO with one hand tied behind my back, one eye closed, three hours of sleep, and no preparation.

They, however, could never do my job, even with a solid forty hours of training, and I work in a postal plant. It's a sweat-aversion thing.

[SemiCharmedQuark]

11. All right!!! I was hoping he'd say something like that!

[Larkspur]

12. That sounds better from Obama

He needs to stand up for a strong public option else the ConservaDems will abort it.

[Matariki]

13. That was a beautiful moment!

Take that, Free Market! :rofl:

[SeeHopeWin]

27. And he repeated it a couple more times....

[checks-n-balances]

14. Yay! Give 'em hell, Barack!

Here's a real gem that I heard someone else ask, so feel free to use it:

If our health care system is "the best in the world," then why isn't the rest of the world copying ours?

That'll leave 'em speechless for sure!

[pnorman]

15. Can you give me the source of that quote?

I want to use it elsewhere, but I can't seem to Google it. Thanks.

pnorman

[Lex]

17. From his press conference this morning.

It's pretty close to accurate, but I can't guarantee word for word. I typed it just after he said it.

[pnorman]

20. Thanks.

I've been off TV for over a decade, so I'd have never seen it. But I should be able to Google it now. It'll probably show up on a DU video pretty soon.

I well know the frustration of trying to Google a phrase from memory. The slightest error.......

pnorman

[pnorman]

21. This must be it:

"If private insurers say that the market place provides the best quality healthcare, then why is it that the government is suddenly going to drive them out?" Obama said. http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/06/23/obama-underscores-need-drastic-health-care-reform-calling-status-quo/

pnorman

[Lex]

22. I hope the full transcript comes out because

I think it was a fuller quote than that. Not sure when the transcripts go up at whitehouse.gov.

[pnorman]

28. "The president is making sense" (Paul Krugman)

Ezra Klein and Matthew Yglesias both catch President Obama making sense on the public option:

QUESTION: Wouldn’t that drive private insurance out of business?

OBAMA: Why would it drive private insurance out of business? If private insurers say that the marketplace provides the best quality health care; if they tell us that they’re offering a good deal, then why is it that the government, which they say can’t run anything, suddenly is going to drive them out of business? That’s not logical.

I will say, however, that young Matt appears to be suffering from Vulcan envy.

http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/06/23/the-president-is-making-sense/

pnorman

[Lex]

30. Thanks for that!

That's the full and precise quote that I desperately tried to capture for my OP.

[pnorman]

32. It was a "joint effort",

with the bulk of the credit going to you. Lately, I've been catching much flak from some friends, who've pretty well written Obama off as "Bush Lite". So I really NEEDED something like that quote, and was overjoyed when you came up with it.

THANKS! :hi: :fistbump: :hi: :fistbump:

pnorman

[pnorman]

46. From "The Nation"

Obama: Refocus and Reset
.
.
.
Obama was clever in exposing the illogic of the insurance lobby and dog-eat-dog, anti-government GOP legislators (who, by the way, enjoy Cadillac government benefits): "They say government can't run anything. Why are they so fearful" of a public plan? As Obama put it, "it's an important tool to discipline insurance companies" and it keeps costs down. And he nodded to the overwhelming support a public plan commands--between 83 percent and 72 percent, depending on the poll--suggesting he needs to get out of DC and get out on the hustings to drum up citizen support for a plan that may well be endangered in the deal-driven, compromise-ridden hothouse of Washington.
.
.
.
http://www.thenation.com/blogs/edcut/445525/obama_refocus_and_reset

pnorman

[bvar22]

16. K&R for Obama.

I am applauding this move.
Make the case to The People.
:patriot:

[ElboRuum]

23. Wow... That... Made... Sense...

Isn't it great to have a president who can actually, um... how do I put this?... hold an idea between his ears long enough to verbalize it in a way that doesn't make English teachers cringe?

[Odin2005]

25. THAT'S the man I voted for!

The haters can suck it!

[SeeHopeWin]

26. I am SOOOOO PROUD of President Obama!!!

[Hepburn]

29. USDA Choice reply....

...:applause:

[malaise]

31. Priceless

GObama!

[spanone]

33. he's absolutely right....but the lobbyists, who own both houses of congress, disagree.

[Bluerthanblue]

34. I particularly liked that smack-down.

Nothing like common sense to silence the liars.

[Puzzler]

35. The opposition has essentially been check-mated with this argument.

[malletgirl02]

37. DU

Looks like either President Obama or someone on his staff has been reading DU.

[leeroysphitz]

38. Obama said that? This is an actual quote? Wow. That is VERY encouraging.

I was beginning to lose hope...

[Lex]

39. Post #28

has the actual quote. I thought I had it close, but here it is:

QUESTION: Wouldn’t that drive private insurance out of business?

OBAMA: Why would it drive private insurance out of business? If private insurers say that the marketplace provides the best quality health care; if they tell us that they’re offering a good deal, then why is it that the government, which they say can’t run anything, suddenly is going to drive them out of business? That’s not logical.

[leeroysphitz]

40. Wow. That's even better. However this turns out I'm so glad he came through.

This sound bite should be repeated again again on every news channel...

[DatManFromNawlins]

41. The response to that is simple and straightforward

Most people don't purchase health insurance. Employers do. They'll go for the cheapest plan they can find, and their employees will be stuck with it.

[Lex]

43. Tell that to those who have jobs and have NO health insurance coverage at all.

nt

[Danascot]

42. Telling Graphic

Special Interest Money Means Longer Odds for Public Option

by Nate Silver

As I lamented yesterday, health care is one of those areas where both popular opinion and sound public policy seem to take a backseat to protecting those stakeholders who benefit from the status quo. But can we actually see -- statistically -- the impact of lobbying by the insurance industry on the prospects for health care reform? I believe that the answer is yes.



http://www.fivethirtyeight.com/2009/06/special-interest-money-means-longer.html?2ndtry

[Fire_Medic_Dave]

44. How could the government put a company out of business? Lots of ways.

Did anyone answer his question?

David

[Lex]

45. Rhetorical. He was responding to a question.

The exact quote was:

QUESTION: Wouldn’t that drive private insurance out of business?

OBAMA: Why would it drive private insurance out of business? If private insurers say that the marketplace provides the best quality health care; if they tell us that they’re offering a good deal, then why is it that the government, which they say can’t run anything, suddenly is going to drive them out of business? That’s not logical.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=5905741&mesg_id=5908363

[Overseas]

47. And they have had decades since crushing the last serious push for national health insurance

to show us how much more efficient the "free market" could be. They've had their chance with that myth. It is now well & duly shattered.