When All Else Fails ...

Blame the Media

Senate Dems blame media for August health deadline

'(Senate Majority Leader Harry) Reid said reporters created a fictitious deadline of a successful vote by the August recess, and downplayed the fact that the chamber won’t meet that mark.“That is a deadline that you created,” Reid told a group of about 75 reporters. '

Is that so Harry. Let's take peak at the transcript from Obama's nationally televised prime time infomercial from a July 22.

QUESTION: Thank you, Mr. President. You've been pushing Congress to pass health care reform by August. Why the rush? Are you worried that, if you don't, there's a delay until the fall, the whole effort will collapse?
OBAMA: A couple of points. Number one, I'm rushed because I get letters every day from families that are being clobbered by health care costs. And they ask me, "Can you help?" ...
The second thing is the fact that, if you don't set deadlines in this town, things don't happen.


This earliest mention of a deadline by Democrats I could find is May 13.

"The House is working to pass a comprehensive health care reform bill by July 31, before they head out for the August recess, and that's the kind of urgency and determination that we need to achieve what I believe will be historic legislation," Obama said. Pelosi, speaking before Obama, vowed health care legislation would be on the floor of the House by the end of July. "

Obama and Pelosi announce ObamaCare deadline on May 13

So why is Reid now making the media a scapegoat and lying through his teeth in the process? Is it because the Republicans are about to go into half-time with a lead, and when they come back out they get to receive the ball, and have the wind at their backs?

The Democrats took a risk when setting the August deadline. The idea was to have Obama, Pelosi, and Reid to use their respective bully pulpits to slam through ObamaCare under a false sense of urgency. The poll numbers were on their side and would remain so, as long as the public did not have the opportunity to see the devil in the details. For Democrats the risk was not meeting the deadline, losing all momentum in the process.

The same time the Democrats announced the August deadline, the Republicans wisely set the goal of making sure that deadline wouldn't be met. This is a huge victory for the GOP. Democrats own the White House, and have near super-majorities in both houses of Congress - but yet they failed to meet a deadline the imposed upon themselves. Obama is going to be spending August not only stumping for support, he's going to be fighting to keep the support he currently has.

During the month of July, the "Rasmussen Daily Presidential Approval Index" has gone from -1 to -11. On his first day in the White House that number was +28, on June 1st he was at +7. The numbers don't lie but the prove that more and more Americans believe Obama does

If you're opposed to socialized medicine, then you're probably opposed to Obama in the first place. If you support socialized medicine, you're probably disappointed with his failure to corral fellow Democrats in the House and Senate to meet his deadline. By the time September roles around, ObamaCare may well be hanging on the same wall of failure as HillaryCare.