MINNEAPOLIS — President Barack Obama assailed critics of his health care initiative Saturday, seeking to grab the megaphone from his opponents and boost momentum in his drive for congressional passage of his chief domestic priority.
“I will not accept the status quo. Not this time. Not now,” the president told an estimated 15,000 people during a rally that had every feel of a campaign event, right down to chants of “Fired up, ready to go!” and “Yes, we can!”
Days after urging Democrats and Republicans in Congress to come together, an invigorated Obama said his plan incorporates ideas from those on both sides and he promised to continue to seek common ground.
“If you come to me with a serious set of proposals, I will be there to listen. My door is always open,” he said.
But he warned that he wouldn’t waste time with people who have decided “that it’s better politics to kill this plan than improve it.”
The pitch came in friendly territory. Democratic-leaning Minnesota is one of the nation’s healthiest states, with relatively few uninsured residents, cost-effective medical care and top health care providers such as the Mayo Clinic.
Obama portrayed his proposal as a benefit to more people by arguing that chances are high that anyone could lack insurance for at least a little while.
He cited a new Treasury Department analysis that found that nearly half of all people younger than 65 go without health coverage sometime in a 10-year period. The data came from a study that tracked the insurance status of a sample of people from 1997 to 2006.
He criticized opponents who he claimed were spreading rumors designed to scare people as they try to “bring Obama down.”
I’ll be held accountable, says president.
In a CBS “60 Minutes” interview to air tonight, President Barack Obama says he is focused on overhauling health care the right way: “I have no interest in having a bill get passed that fails. That doesn’t work.”
He adds, “I intend to be president for a while, and once this bill passes, I own it.”
And if it doesn’t work, “I’m the one who’s going to be held responsible. So I have every incentive to get this right.” The Associated Press
