Posted on 08/23/2009 2:32:13 PM PDT by neverdem
Wading into the debate on a national health care plan, Senator John McCain said on Sunday that one way for Democrats and Republicans to reach a compromise would be for President Obama to abandon a government-run insurance program for the nation’s 49 million uninsured.
Interviewed on ABC’s “This Week with George Stephanopoulos” Mr. McCain, the Arizona Republican and 2008 presidential candidate, said that a public plan would cause many Americans to lose their private health insurance. Although he was not asked to explain, opponents of a government-run plan have previously warned that many employers would scuttle private insurance for their workers if such a program were enacted.
“Certainly if you have it, you shouldn’t have to lose it,” Mr. McCain said of private insurance. “But under the president’s plan, you would have to lose it in my view because of the government option. I believe that one of the fundamentals for any agreement would be that the president abandon the government option.”
Last week, Kathleen Sebelius, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, said that a government-run plan was not essential to an overhaul, a concession to United States senators who say such a plan could not win the backing of a majority of the crucial Senate Finance Committee. The focus shifted to discussion of nonprofit medical co-operatives, which are popular in some Midwestern states and more palatable to conservatives. But outrage by liberals supporting a government plan has made the fate of that provision unclear.
Senator Charles E. Schumer, the New York Democrat and a member of the Finance committee, said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that President Obama “believes strongly in a public option.”
He argued that a government plan was imperative because it would introduce competition in the industry. In 40 of the 50 states, he said...
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
Interviewed on ABC's "This Week with George Stephanopoulos" Mr. McCain, the Arizona Republican and 2008 presidential candidate, said that a public plan would cause many Americans to lose their private health insurance... "Certainly if you have it, you shouldn't have to lose it," Mr. McCain said of private insurance. "But under the president's plan, you would have to lose it in my view because of the government option. I believe that one of the fundamentals for any agreement would be that the president abandon the government option." ...The focus shifted to discussion of nonprofit medical co-operatives, which are popular in some Midwestern states and more palatable to conservatives. But outrage by liberals supporting a government plan has made the fate of that provision unclear.Where this POS reporter refers to "Mr. McCain" s/b "Senator McCain". Thanks neverdem.
McShame - There is NO compromise. You are a lame duck senator, how does that grab you?
Juan McCain is an evil idiot.
Ping... looks like the ole RINO is ready to “compromise” principles (again) for 0bamaCare. No butt too dirty to smooch.
How obtuse can you be? You believe that Republicans should pretend to work out a deal just so the media won't think their meanies?
I don’t want the subject changed. The Republicans are playing this perfectly. Shouting from the rooftops that “no way, no how, we’re ever going to have a bill” would be stupid, and make THEM and not the bill and Obama’s constant bumbling the issue.
That's how the public feels though - no way, no how! THEY DON'T WANT THIS BILL. It makes no sense politically, for the Republicans to try and help pass this (even if it is for show). Especially considering that the Republican proposals have been completely ignored by the Dems.
I never said they should support THIS bill. I don’t think they should ultimately support any bill, but to stubbornly say that, they’ll look like children, and that would change the subject.
NO. No compromise, just NO!
OMG. He took the bait again.
He’s so stupid they don’t even bait the hook anymore, just toss into the light and the glint causes him to leap for it.
According to the pilots I know, McCain's Daddy had quite a lot of pull. He graduated last in his class and crashed two aircraft, plus caused a blackout in Spain when he was screwing around and flew through some power lines. Some pilot.
Geez, would somebody throw a net over that SOB already!!!
There’s a helluva lot more wrong with that piece of crap bill than just the government option, which ultimately is no option.
The number one thing we should be talking about is the fact that congress has exempted itself and federal employees from the bill. The second thing we should be talking about are the provisions that obligate taxpayers to fund pruvate union health care and pensions. The third thing we should be talking about is that illegals are not excluded from receiving health care under the bill and that abortion is not excluded. Unless something is specifically excluded, it’s not excluded.
McCain needs to STFU about compromises. I am so sick of him I really could scream.
In a point of historical accuracy, he wasn't a fighter pilot, but a ground attack pilot. Nevertheless he should have washed out of flight training, but being the son, and grandson, of naval admirals had something to do with it...
the infowarrior
I agree with what you've been saying throughout this thread- from a public relations standpoint, it's bad politics to look like a pack of braying, naysaying obstructionists. Republicans do indeed need to appear to be offering the dems some smart, saner reforms which would actually fix the problems rather than reward the federal government for its disastrous mishandling of medicare & medicaid by handing it everything else it hasn't yet screwed up. Absolutely! In fact pubbies have BEEN doing that, though they don't get any traction with the state run media which is pushing Obama's bill.
The problem is here we're not talking about generic republicans adapting a 'reasonable', flexible attitude for the sake of public relations in this battle.
We're talking about John Sidney McCain, a card-carrying member of his very own party of one who's never met a problem he didn't think a massive government program designed by his BFFs across the aisle wouldn't fix. What he's saying here is NOT just for the benefit of enhacing Rebublicans' political negotiating position. Not on your life!
Nope, this man is going to get his name on the 2009 McCain-Kennedy-Feingold-Lieberman Health Act if it kills him, by golly, and he doesn't care if he has to screw Republicans, the elderly or his country to get his name on it or any other bill for that matter, no matter how truly rotten it is.
In fact, just so long as there's even a little bit of space on the top of the page where he can squeeze in his name in there somewhere, McCain is good to go as one of its sponsors & he doesn't care one whit what's actually in it!
Now, if some other Republican had said he was considering the bill without x,y or z component, we could probably trust him that he's just playing to the press for the sake of appearing deliberative & wasn't really going to sign his name to a dem turkey like Obamacare & help the dems share the blame with the repubs for the disastrous consequences which will likely ensue from their legislative malfeasance.
It's just that, given McCain's ignominious history of saddling the citizens with some of the worst, most boneheaded 'compromise' legislation ever crafted in the history of this Republic (see: McCain-Feingold, McCain-Kennedy, McCain-Lieberman etc etc et al ad nauseum), we KNOW only too well we can't expect that this man will do what's right for the American people if it means he must forego getting any bill-naming 'glory'. That's just who this man is, unfortunately. That's the sum total of his ideology (emphasis on the id.)
IOW, I don't think any of us here would be averse at all to another Republican making politically smart conciliatory-sounding noises about trying to find common ground with POTUS & the dem majority for the good of the nation yadayada as you correctly suggested is wise, it's just John McCain in particular who makes us scream 'BOHICA!' when he even starts talking this way about 'compromise'.
We've all just seen this movie too many times before, unfortunately.
I don't know. McCain likes to hear himself talk. The rats nominally have the votes to do this all by themselves, but they got their majority in Congress by making false pretenses since 2006. Saying no "Public Option" makes the marxists go bonkers.
A Grand Bargain Over Evolution
Fed to Steal State Pension Funds?
The Greenback Effect (Warren Buffett Warning!)
The Obama Family wages war: On health care, Prez tries to make us an offer we can't refuse
Some noteworthy articles about politics, foreign or military affairs, IMHO, FReepmail me if you want on or off my list.
“McCain Says Public Option Must Be Dropped for Compromise”
Little f*ckhead’s just trying to get re-elected.
McCain wants a “compromise”.......just like in 2008 when he kept talking about standing for “regular Americans” and being a “maverick” against the “big boys”, then when the bailout for the fat cats was up for vote in the Senate, he stopped campaigning to zip back to DC to vote for the fat cat bailout with his Senate “colleagues”. Look out for another Johnny stab-in-our-back.
WE DON’T WANT COMPROMISE!!!
We want things like TORT REFORM.
And RINOs that disappear.
We don't want a compromise. The public option is not the only thing wrong with ObamaCare.
Thanks for the ping, neverdem. Posts #2 and #3 pretty well sum up the situation for me.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.