- Highlights
- Full Text
[0:00] ..." This is married like WBZ Newsradio 1030 speaking with ABC political analyst Steve Roberts president Obama's signature issue health care reform. Passing the US house barely what happens now how do you assess the"...
[1:07] ..." option which would. Provide a an option for people who don't have health insurance to buying. Policies from publicly run company lot of conservatives very unhappy with that Joe Lieberman from Connecticut. Has said he will not vote flat out not vote for a bill in the Senate to contain to public"...
[4:28] ..." was obviously. It's been far less helpful and people had hoped the unemployment rate continues to rise but I also think. It's a legitimate argument to Democrats can make that if things would have been worse without. There -- large scale and rapid intervention in the economy. I do think that the health care bill is on track to eventually become law. And the public continues to have confidence in Barack Obama as a person but. Two things have happened one is there's always an inevitable. Falloff from the euphoria. Of an Election Day. And he just read Barack Obama's speeches and words today and listen to the moment. There's not the same freshness is not the same excitement that the very"...
[6:00] ..." That was ABC political analyst Steve Roberts. Mary Blake WBZ Newsradio 1030."...
[0:00]" This is married like WBZ Newsradio 1030 speaking with ABC political analyst Steve Roberts president Obama's signature issue health care reform. Passing the US house barely what happens now how do you assess the events of the weekend state."
[0:14]" Well the first thing is to give a certain amount of credit to the democratic leadership they have an enormously difficult problem trying to find -- That would attract a majority vote you have liberals -- very unhappy on one side with them. Some of the restrictions on abortion knew -- conservatives very unhappy on the other with the enormous cost to this bill over a trillion dollars. In the end it passed for only one reason and that is a majority Democrats were willing to move the process forward out of loyalty to the party and even more so loyalty to the president. It's not as if there was a majority for the substance there was a majority floor. Backing the president and that really was the key factor that kept the ball rolling into the same dynamic is gonna show up in the Senate their a lot of Democrats. Conservative Democrats. Unhappy with provisions in the house bill particularly in this so called public option which would. Provide a an option for people who don't have health insurance to buying. Policies from publicly run company lot of conservatives very unhappy with that Joe Lieberman from Connecticut. Has said he will not vote flat out not vote for a bill in the Senate to contain to public option. And you have only 660 democratic votes and in the current senate. Where filibusters are very common you don't need fifty votes he needs sixty in the only sixty Democrats that means everyone every single one. -- to protect is a potential deal breaker in deal maker. So Lieberman is only the first of many to say you want my vote you gotta come my way and that's going to be very tough for the democratic leadership."
[1:53]" How do you assess the bill in the house you know some people purist who wanted the public option and more and as you mentioned the abortion component. Are not happy. And is some people are saying -- get something on the table and then we'll work with it what's your read your opinion on them."
[2:11]" My opinion is that. A bill of this enormous size. 17 of the entire economy related to health care. With so many different interest this is a very big country healthcare is not one problem in America it's dozens of different problems depending on. To where you are in the kind of services that are available in your area and so I think just getting a bill through is an enormous. Accomplishment. But there's no such thing as a pure bill and an anybody in the legislative business who is a purist on a bill like this. Is gonna be dissatisfied. You can't allow if you going to be successful as soon as a legislator or you can't allow the perfect to be the enemy of the good. And in the end a lot of people who voted for that bill we're very unhappy with certain provisions in it. But that's how the legislative process works and that's why the leadership for the president is so critical in this because he has to be able. To go to his own people and say look. As a party. We have to be united or at least united enough as a party we have to be able to go to the voters next year and say we have accomplished what we promised we would. In the end enough Democrats will have a vested interest in being able to do that. So that they will swallow their doubts and swallow their the imperfections and swallow their. Disappointment. And vote for the bill and that's why in the end I think at some point not this year because I think this will not happen this year but early next year. Hey bill we'll get to the president because that one argument would trump everything else -- Democrat."
[3:55]" One final question to just another subject I mean it's been one year now since since election night when President Obama gave that that moving speech twelve months later. It is he. Bittersweet in terms of where he is what he wanted to accomplish what is -- transpired events that are out of his control that he has to deal with I mean you -- can take some. A satisfaction from know what he has done in the past twelve months."
[4:21]" Well I think he can he can take some satisfaction. It's hard to measure what the impact of the stimulus package was obviously. It's been far less helpful and people had hoped the unemployment rate continues to rise but I also think. It's a legitimate argument to Democrats can make that if things would have been worse without. There -- large scale and rapid intervention in the economy. I do think that the health care bill is on track to eventually become law. And the public continues to have confidence in Barack Obama as a person but. Two things have happened one is there's always an inevitable. Falloff from the euphoria. Of an Election Day. And he just read Barack Obama's speeches and words today and listen to the moment. There's not the same freshness is not the same excitement that the very same words produced a year ago and that's inevitable let's unavoidable. The other thing is that some of the problems he's been hand that he can talk only once about well I inherited the economic problem I inherited. The issue of Afghanistan all of which is true. But after a year this is his war it's his economy. And I think that his ability to set the agenda. And move forward on a lot of his priorities are really crippled. By these enormous problems the inherited and I think a year ago. It wasn't quite as clear to him or to his supporters. How difficult it would be. To deal with a failing economy and failing war in Afghanistan and he's got to deal with both of them."
[6:00]" That was ABC political analyst Steve Roberts. Mary Blake WBZ Newsradio 1030."
Del.icio.us
Digg
Reddit
