"Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said that government alternative to private health insurance is "not the essential element" of the administration's health care overhaul"

Not essential?

Funny, that's not what Obama has said:

"(A)ny plan I sign must include an insurance exchange: a one-stop shopping marketplace where you can compare the benefits, cost and track records of a variety of plans - including a public option to increase competition and keep insurance companies honest - and choose what's best for your family."

So, is Sebelius clueless, or just lying?

Beware of Trojan Horses. BS from the WH

Them rat bastards sneeked death panels into law right under our noses. Right now there are government sponsored swampland.blogs.time.com/2009/08/13/oh-those-death-panels/ deciding who should live or die.

I wonder what happened to

Obama - Any plan I sign must include an insurance exchange: a one-stop shopping marketplace where you can compare the benefits, cost and track records of a variety of plans - including a public option to increase competition and keep insurance companies honest - and choose what's best for your family.

tina.... did you fail to answer the question posed at the end of your article?

I.E. "So either Republicans were for death panels in 2003 before turning against them now--or they're lying about end-of-life counseling in order to frighten the bejeezus out of their fellow citizens and defeat health reform by any means necessary."

Of course in your crazy whacky world only libs/progressives/dems and libturds can change positions on policy matters.

reps and conservatives... not so much.

Apparently Baraks opaque transparent policies have failed in their libturd intent.

Too bad, so sad.

If the Public Plan aka Obamacare does not go through, he will say "I have always said that a public plan is not necessary." and the MSM will let that slide by.

His failure is Americas success.

When they blink, you wind up and hit them even HARDER. This is not a time to compromise! This is the time to keep pushing so they scrap HR3200 and write something reasonable from scratch, with all the stakeholders participating. Now is when we need to push so the House Of Representatives do the job they were elected to do.

The two faces of obama, via his NYT op-ed on Sunday:

He dirst says: "We are bound to disagree, but let's disagree over issues that are real, and not wild misrepresentations that bear no resemblance to anything that anyone has actually proposed. This is a complicated and critical issue, and it deserves a serious debate."

Then quickly follows with: "I hear more and more stories like these every single day, and it is why we are acting so urgently to pass health-insurance reform this year."

Since when does debate over critical and serious issues have to be done "urgently?"

Since the "Age of Obama," obviously, and since "we can't let a crisis go to waste".

Be very, very careful in thinking that the "public option" is dead.

Very, very careful.

These are conniving people we are dealing with.

In fact, the new buzz word on the table is "co-op".

Guess what that means....that's right...pretty much the same as "public option".

I'll try and find the Harry Reid quotes where he talked about that.

As Aye Chihuahua says, Beware! A rose by any other name is still a rose.

"...experts believe that they will be private insurance exchanges created by government mandate and launched with government start-up money."

Gee, just like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. We all know how well those were managed.

And just when do the co-ops get the money turned off from Uncle Sam? AFTER they've driven private health care companies out of business?

The Post Office has a $5 BILLION payment to make this September for health care costs of retirees. The Postmaster General has stated "We don't have the money!"

NO GOV'T HEALTH PLAN, NO CO-OP HEALTH PLAN.
GO BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD!

We need to see the bill. I will be waiting for a Trojan Horse that can easily morph into a public option.

Barack Obama is absolutely NOT to be trusted. His words mean NOTHING.

A quote comes to mind~

"You can put lipstick on a pigg, but its still Obama."

The two faces of obama, via his NYT op-ed on Sunday:

Ya know, I read that article earlier this morning and have thought about it a little.

Obama says that we'll save, like, a bunch of money by 1) cutting waste and inefficiency in Medicare and Medicaid, and 2) eliminating "unwarranted subsidies to insurance companies" and/or stopping tax dollars that go to "enriching insurance companies" instead of "caring for seniors."

So, I went to http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune500/2008/industries/223/index.html

to figure out how much money the big bad insurance companies make. I only looked at the top ten health insurance companies. It seems their profit for 2007 was $ 12.8 billion (on $ 241 billion in revenues).

So, if we end health insurance, and the government is at least as efficient as private insurance in administering costs (very doubtful), we'll save the $ 12.8 billion which was once the profit of the health insurance industry.

But, the CBO says that Obamacare will cost one trillion dollars over ten years, or $100 billion each year. So, if every cent of the $ 12.8 billion of the top ten insurance companies goes back into the system, we're still more than $ 87 billion short every year.

That leaves us with the "hundreds of billions of dollars in waste and inefficiency" in Medicare and Medicaid. But, why is this absurd health reform legislation needed to fix that? Wouldn't a strongly worded memo to the H&HS Secretary do just as well?

What am I missing?

I'm not buying it.

They'll get the Republicans to compromise it into existence and once it's enabled, lock them out of conference, putting everything Obama wants into it.

They did it with the Porkulus and Cap-and-Tax. What makes you think they won't do it again?

This is not time for a happy dance. Its time to turn up the heat.

senor Chihuahua's comment is right on the mark...

"Be very, very careful in thinking that the "public option" is dead.

Very, very careful.

These are conniving people we are dealing with.

In fact, the new buzz word on the table is "co-op".

Guess what that means....that's right...pretty much the same as "public option"."

The Dims aren't near done with the "public" option...they didn't payoff the AARP and all the other lobbyist groups to give up on a Government-run Medinsurance program.

Keep up the heat on your Congress"person"...
Now that we got their attention - make 'em HEAR the message! A vote for Obama Health Care plan is a One-way ticket to losing their next election!

Let's plan this thoroughly and with BI-partisan support. Not a FORCED plan from Libocrats who have no CLUE what the American voter wants.

Those 'evil' insurance companies are down at #35 on Forbes list of profitable companies. Their latest 'return on investment' was 2.2%. I get better odds at my credit union.

Barry is full of shit. Mr. Platitudes. Mr. Soundbite. He wants to add an ill-defined "uninsured" group of 47 million to the current system which is and has been running deficits for years. The baby boomers (all 73 MILLION - born between 1943-60) have started to arrive on Social Security/Medicare's doorstep. We'll have FEWER workers making contributions to the system, yet covering MORE people; and Barry will do it with LESS money.

Yeah, and I'm the tooth fairy.

"Yeah, and Im the tooth fairy."

Yeah, but He is the one, the Godsend, the hope of all mankind. He can do anything He sets His mind too... Accept maybe... Turn a profit and be a + for the Country.

Words mean nothing when they come from Obama. Let's see a bill.

Until there is draft text of a bill that constitutes the reform proposal that the Dems are putting forth that aligns with Obama's BS all we have is an empty promise and what amounts to a subterfuge to get the bill passed as is.

He has been saying that the bill doesn't do exactly what everyone reads that it does so why should anyone believe that he means this.

It is easier for me to believe that he will say that they've taken it out and then just leave it in and the MSM will cover for him.

Heck, congress will fall all over themselves saying that it has been taken out even if it hasn't since they seem utterly incapable of actually reading anything they vote on.

What you're witnessing here ladies and gentlemen is a fantastic example of the classic "bait & switch".

Remember what I said earlier. These are conniving people. They have a goal in mind and will do whatever, and crush whoever they need to in order to accomplish the goal.

Here's what Harry Reid had to say back in July:

"We're going to have some type of public option, call it 'co-op,' call it what you want."

http://www.cato.org/pub_display.php?pub_id=10401

Senator Schumer:

"We don't care what it's called.

http://congress.blogs.foxnews.com/2009/07/09/reid-says-co-ops-might-be-public-option/

They can call it "Titanic" "Hindenburg" or "Barak Obama" and it will all end up in the same place. A graveyard, a junkyard or working at Montgomery Ward.

Of course, he has had his union and 'ACORN' thugs pushing the original plan, and he has forced Democrats to defend the plan as it was written (Developed and written WITHOUT input from the GOP BTW).

Another case of kicking whoever he has to under the bus. I say kicked under the bus, because they committed themselves and their resources to the plan currently in process, nd now look like cheap thugs and cowards in the eyes of the voters, while he scrambles for cover.

But Obama has damaged his Presidency by continuing to use the tactics of a cheap Chicago political bully; and then whining about getting smacked down by those he tried to victimize.

So, is Tina S the only troll dumb enough to show Her ignorance here? Or are the rest of the "Rat pack" recieving new directives as We cautiously applause their well deserved failure?

Ha ha.. 3 minutes will tell.

Barry appears not to grasp the concept behind insurance: namely, to have interest-free access to other people's money to invest, and thereby to make money from those investments. They don't make the big bucks from premiums.

To anyone who doubts this: why does American Express push Traveler's Checks?

Dey all jes pausin t reload dats all.

The current leftist line is that if any private company accepts federal assistance, then that company has tacitly granted federal control over its business.

How much more so over this government-created but privately-run "co-op?" Yeah, that's what I thought. Color me skeptical.

Well seeing as private companys and employees pay the taxes that fund the federal assistance hypothetically recieved... Sounds like it should be the other way around somehow?

Go back to the drawing board is right. I hope the RINO's don't start reaching out their hands to make a deak for the September vote that Obama wants. They will once again find a 3AM 300 page ammendment with enough vague language that Dem's will use to resurrect the public option.

To me there is only one option, SLOW DOWN and START OVER. We're sick of the emergency cram down legislation.

#30

And every fortune cookie is only as good as the cats and dogs who gave there all to make it possible.

Bowing to REPUBLICAN pressure?

They can't even lose gracefully, blaming their mistakes on a Republican Party that did not have to provide one single vote in either house to pass.

LOL!

Lol!

That is kind of ridiculous isnt it? The pantywaists have the frickin majority they always had wet dreams about yet somehow theres no action in their nether regions?

Sounds terminal.

To add upon that... I guess they need a hundred percent liberal vote tally before they have the balls to vote for it.. And then when it inevitably leads to failure ..They just blame Buusshh...So whats the freakin hold up?

Oh yeah, they dont wanna look bad while lyin thru their taxpayer funded dentalwork.

Obama...UP YOURS.....with a colonoscope. But
beware...if a doctor finds a polyp, he may
opt to cut off your foot, to make $50,000
you quoted to the world in a town hall. These
damned doctors should be put yearly in front
of a committee set up by your "Medical Czar"
and dealt with appropriately, with severe fines
all the way up to firing squads.Damn those
doctors, Obama, but GOD BLESS YOU!