White House Insists Bipartisan Health Care Bill Is Still a Possibility

By GottaLaff

Who's kidding who here? Any "bipartisanship" is tantamount to the Dems caving to the Rushpublics. The other side has come right out and said they will not support any bill, compromise or no compromise.

Delusional much? Or is this my sleep deprivation speaking? I kvetch, you decide:

The White House on Wednesday pushed back against reports suggesting that President Barack Obama is ready to concede that he can’t get Republican votes for health care overhaul legislation, asserting that the administration still believes a bipartisan bill is possible.

“We continue to be hopeful that we’ll get bipartisan support, and we’ll continue to work with those that are interested in doing that,” White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said. “The president has said countless times he will work with anybody in any party who wants to work constructively on health care reform.”

Gibbs directly rejected the contention in an article in Wednesday’s New York Times that said administration officials are “increasingly convinced” they will have to focus their effort solely on uniting fractious Democrats.

Gibbs denied that there is even strategizing in the White House about a Democrats-only option.

“There’s several more weeks to go in negotiations between Republicans and Democrats,” he said. “I don’t know why we would short-circuit that now.”

Gibbs acknowledged that many Republicans have hardened their opposition to Obama’s initiative, but he contended there are still Republicans on the Finance Committee and elsewhere who want to forge a bipartisan deal with Obama.

Deal? To the Rushpublics, a deal looks like this:

The Boehner makes my point for me:

But leading Republicans question how committed the White House has ever been to bipartisanship.

“From day one, the White House has taken a go-it-alone approach on health care,” House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) asserted in a statement. “Months ago, Republicans sent the President a letter noting areas of potential common ground on health care reform and requesting a meeting with him to discuss a bipartisan way forward,” he added.

“The Administration rejected our efforts to work together, choosing instead to craft a costly government takeover of health care and to march forward on a partisan basis solely with Democrats in Congress,” the statement continued.

Y'see, one big problem is that Democrats don't have the votes yet, all by their lonesomes. Senators Kennedy and Byrd haven't been able to vote due to illness, sadly. And then there are those pesky Blue Dogs.

Gibbs said any type of effort is possible by Obama to get an agreement on the health care bill once Congress returns, including a trip by the president to Capitol Hill.

“I think the president would orbit the moon if he thought it would help,” Gibbs said.

We'd be right there with him, all gussied up in our nifty space suits, if only he'd let us. But I have a queasy feeling that the Rushpublics would cut our oxygen supply and blame it all on a socialist government take-over of the space ship which was designed to kill us during our end-of-life orbit around Planet Public Option.