WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama is trying to persuade a weary public and wavering Democrats to get behind his frantic, late-stage push on health care, while Republicans dig in and demand starting from scratch after a year’s worth of work.
“Now, despite all the progress and improvements we’ve made, Republicans in Congress insist that the only acceptable course on health care is to start over. But you know what? The insurance companies aren’t starting over,” Obama said in his weekly radio and Internet address Saturday.
Republicans were not swayed. “It’s not too late: We can, and we must, stop this government takeover of health care,” said Rep. Parker Griffith, a retired physician and a first-term congressman from Alabama who switched parties in December and delivered the GOP message.
The rival addresses underscore the urgency behind Obama’s health push. Without a victory, Democrats move into the election season without a major, tangible accomplishment that affects voters’ pocketbooks. The Associated Press
