Health Care Lobbyists Will Save The Day for Obama

according to AP. (Since when are lobbyists praised as a positive force, by a news agency of all people?) Anyway, here's a highly partisan article from such a lobbyist-praising news agency, AP.

Lobbyists the silver lining in health care storm?
(by RICARDO ALONSO-ZALDIVAR, 7/25/09 AP via Yahoo News)

"WASHINGTON – A strong force, perhaps as powerful in Congress as President Barack Obama, is keeping the drive for health care going even as lawmakers seem hopelessly at odds.

"Lobbyists.

"The drug industry, the American Medical Association, hospital groups and the insurance lobby are all saying Congress must make major changes this year. Television ads paid for by drug companies and insurers continued to emphasize the benefits of a health care overhaul — not the groups' objections to some of the proposals."

Note the word "hopelessly" in the first paragraph. To the writer, it's apparently a hopeless situation when the health care reform bill (H.R. 3200) strongly pushed by none other than President Obama hasn't already passed the House. Those pesky lawmakers. How dare they question the wisdom of the bill?

If doctors, hospitals, insurance companies are all for the so-called "reform", as the article claims as a good, positive thing, that is all the more reason NOT to "reform". I've never heard of an industry lobby lobbying for something other than the industry's own interest. Have you?

Now, let's continue with the PR article:

"President Barack Obama on Saturday continued his full-court press to pass health care reform legislation. In his weekly Internet and radio address, Obama cited a new White House study indicating that small businesses pay far more per employee for health insurance than big companies — a disparity he says is "unsustainable — it's unacceptable."

""And it's going to change when I sign health insurance reform into law," Obama said, adding that he has "a sense of urgency about moving this process forward."

"This time, the health care industry groups see a strategic opportunity. As lawmakers squabble, the groups are focused on how to come out ahead in the end game."

Obama's sense of urgency then is clearly fostered by these well-meaning lobbyists. The writer reveals his bias again in the last paragraph. This time, note the word "squabble". Actually reading the bill (H.R. 3200) and arguing the details is "squabble" to this writer.

AP by the way doesn't write like a news agency anymore, in case you haven't noticed. It seems to have become a PR agency for the administration, as their article demonstrated when the climate bill (H.R. 2454) passed the House in June (remember that bill?). Such a volunteerism.

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