The media waiting for President Obama. (Image from Ana Marie Cox.)
Liveblog fun.
AP and Reuters ask silly process Qs.
Chuck Todd asks a bunch of questions that end up at “Will you cover everyone?”
Obama’s surprising answer: “Unless you have a single payer system,” you won’t solve everyone.
Jake Tapper asks if Americans will need to give something up in order to get reform?
Obama says that we’ll give up something we’re not getting. Things that aren’t making us healthier.
Obama then goes into Matrix logic, talking red pill-blue pill choices.
Chip Reid: What kind of pain are you inflicting on Medicare beneficiaries? Would you change the system to take the politics out of it?
Obama talks about Med-Pack, a panel that gives recommendations. Let’s require Congress to vote on the package. It’s not going to reduce Medicare benefits. It’s going to change how they’re delievered.
You said you’d show on C-SPAN, turned down other transparency requests. TARP oversight says you’re not turning over enough. Are you not being as transparent as you said you would be?
Obama says it started on C-SPAN, and there’s now a lot of meetings happening now. It’s not secret. As for TARP, he’ll look into it.
Bloomberg: Is a harder line need against Wall St? Is a fee needed for activities beyond lending?
We did more than nothing, which means we’d be worse if we didn’t do that. We stepped away from the brink. The banks are making money now, which is good, because wins are wins. They’re “taking huge bonuses.”
“I’d like to think people would feel remorse.” … But, they don’t, Mr. President. Did this mess not show you that?
Steve Koff of the Cleveland Plain Dealer [Steve Thomma of McClatchy stood and asked Q - reporters surprised]: Can you guarantee that the government will not deny any coverage? Will you and the Congress agree to use the public option?
Obama says that the gov’t option is his model for the public option. Regulation will help, but the public option is needed. It will incentivize the private sector to do even better.
The Real Steve Koff … asks about the Cleveland Clinic / Mayo Clinic … Does obama expect an endorsement from the Cleveland Clinic?
Obama: No.
Lynn Sweet asks about Skip Gates.
Obama says that he doesn’t know the whole story, but then goes on to talk a lot about it. “Any of us” would be upset if we were arrested. “The Cambridge Police acted stupidly” in arresting him even once they’d seen his ID. “Race remains a factor. . . . This still haunts us.”
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Chris Geidner is a lawyer in Washington, D.C., who writes at Law Dork, is the senior political writer at Metro Weekly and has written for The Atlantic Online, Advocate.com, Salon and other publications. An extended biography can be found