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To get a bill such as the House version of HCR out of a Congress that included so many "Blue Dogs" was truly brilliant and savvy politics.
Harry Reid had the more entrenched conservative crowd, but Pelosi had an overwhelming number of viewpoints to deal with and consolidate.
In many ways I understand President Obama's position. It's said often, but it bears repeating... he inherited a mess. A colossal mess. A mess on all fronts... economic, national security, environmental, health care, etc. I don't know that George Dubya left anything right with this country when he left it. The President has spent a lot of political capital and effort on the economy and national security fronts. Maybe he thought he'd take a step back and not micromanage, letting Congress do the job that it is paid to do in drafting and passing legislation. Maybe he felt as though he had the power of the veto to fall back on if a bill to his liking wasn't passed.
However, it is clear to me that somewhere along the line, we went from having a strong reform bill that included a public option as the goal of this whole process to having any health care-related bill come out of Congress and pass as the current goal. That's hugely disappointing. Considering the Obama camp was so phenomenal during the campaign with messaging and slogans, I find it hard to believe they could not have simplified and sold health care reform like they did Obama's candidacy. The President has been extremely busy, but health care reform deserved his attention and his personal stamp. If it is passed, it will be one of the signature accomplishments of his administration. It's baffling that he has not been more involved.
Of course, perhaps, he didn't want to make himself the focus and thought his presence would distract from the process.
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