In an interview today on Good Morning America, President Obama previewed his speech to Congress tonight, promising to lay out a detailed plan for health care reform and admitting he has “probably left too much ambiguity out there.”
“I, out of an effort to give Congress the ability to do their thing and not step on their toes, probably left too much ambiguity out there, which allowed, then, opponents of reform to come in and fill up the airwaves with a lot of nonsense,” he said, naming “death panels” and government insurance for illegal immigrants as example of the nonsense.
He said he’d define which principles must be in the bill for him to sign it, but wouldn’t answer whether that includes a public option.
“The intent of the speech,” Obama said, “is to make sure the American people are clear on exactly what we’re proposing … and to dispel some of the myths and, frankly, silliness.”
The president accused some Republicans of wanting to defeat health care reform, hoping it would let them retake control of Congress.
“I think there are some in the Republican Party who made a strategic decision that we can duplicate what happened in 1993, ’94,” he said. “I think that folks are dusting off that old playbook.”
But he also lamented political partisanship and said he’s “frustrated” that certain Republican voices have been lost in the debate.
“On the Republican side there are wonderful people that operate on the basis of pragmatism and common sense and getting things done. Those voices have been shouted down,” he said. “I hope that the Republican party can rediscover that voice. I think they’ll find they have a partner in the White House on all sorts of issues.”
Obama also called the commotion surrounding his school speech ironic because his basic message was a conservative one.
“I guess it was puzzling,” he said. “As you know, for a long time I’ve been talking about the importance of education — not just in terms of government programs, but also parental responsibility, turning off the TV set, putting away the video games — ironically a very conservative message.”
“It’s a message of self help and personal responsibility,” he went on. “I thought it would be a good day to kick off the first day of school.”
