Obama Fights Back on Healthcare

The lead article in today’s New York Times is titled, “Obama to Speak Before Congress on Health Care.” It describes his plans to address a joint session of Congress next week and some possible compromises he may propose. These range from minor modifications such as eliminating the phrasing that opponents say could lead to “death panels,” to scaling back from universal coverage to coverage just for families with children.

The article goes on to note that this represents a much greater involvement by President Obama and that addressing Congress in a prime time speech is somewhat of a political gamble. It also states that he has not yet abandoned the “public option” per se. In fact, Senator Charles Schumer said that an address directly from President Obama to the American people could in itself change the political atmosphere.

In my opinion, Senator Schumer is right. Mr. Obama has been in tough situations before and has resorted to exactly the same tactic. The controversy over Reverend Wright represents a prime example. His attitude has always been the same when faced by the shrill and vicious attacks preferred by the Republicans. A cool and reasoned explanation, laying out the facts and making a case for the best way to move forward.

I’m looking forward to this very approach next Wednesday night.