Flotsam and Jetsam
By Jennifer Rubin on Contentions
Obama was in fact a single-payer health-care supporter back in 2003, despite his denials. Why he gets caught up in these credibility spats remains a mystery.
According to Gallup, only 35 percent of voters want their representatives to vote for ObamaCare. Sixty-five percent either oppose ObamaCare or aren't sure.
Ed Koch thinks Americans are "falling out of love" with Obama.
Arlen Specter gets yelled at by voters. ("You work for us!") He seemed to think he could tell voters not to boo him.
Harry Reid shows polling weakness.
Ronald Lauder of the World Jewish Congress: "Respect the sovereignty of democratic allies. When free people in a democracy express their preferences, the United States should respect their opinions. The current administration should not try to impose ideas on allies like Israel. The administration would also do well to take heed of the Palestinian Authority's continued refusal to recognize Israel as the nation-state of the Jewish people. This is not a trivial matter. A long-term settlement can only be forged on the basis of mutual recognition and respect. To deny the essence of the Zionist project—to rebuild the Jewish people's ancient homeland—is to call into question the seriousness of one's commitment to peace."
Ruth Marcus is disillusioned—Obama isn't about change, and she's mighty upset with his deal-cutting with drug-company lobbyist Billy Tauzin: "The greatest peril for Obama, I think, lies in the question of whether he can produce the new, post-partisan, surmounting-special-interests politics that he envisioned during the campaign. In a month of raucous town hall meetings and stalled legislation, that hardly seems likely. The secret deal with Tauzin can only deepen the skepticism. Which leads to the core question facing the still-young administration: What happens when people start to wonder whether they can really believe in this change?" Well, I guess they vote for someone else or stay home.
Mickey Kaus dissects the White House spin on health care, as well as their favorite spinner, Marc Ambinder, who peddles the line that health-care town halls are really a positive thing for ObamaCare. "If Ambinder were any easier to spin, he'd be a dreidl."
Meanwhile, Obama is having trouble keeping his spin straight. No, AARP hasn't endorsed his health-care plan. |
