Drunkblogging ObamaCare Posted By _Stephen Green_ On July 23, 2009 @ 12:50 am In _. Column1 02_, _Politics_, _Uncategorized_ | _94 Comments <http://pajamasmedia.com/blog/drunkblogging-obamacare/?print=1#comments_controls>_
*4:48PM* I'm watching Fox News tonight, instead of the usual CNN. Why? Because DirecTV makes it easy to remember FNC (Channel 360, get it?), but CNN (Channel 2...something) not so much. We're 12 minutes out, and I'm in desperate need of a second martini. Back momentarily. *4:48PM* Oh, and all times Pacific, it seems. *4:49PM* Also liveblogging, [1] Dr. Melissa Clouthier <http://www.melissaclouthier.com/2009/07/22/liveblogging-the-obama-address-tonight/>. She tells me she might be drinking. Or wishes she was. Or something. *4:53PM* Yes, you can already read the bulk of the President's remarks online. But that's cheating, and I won't do it. But I will go pour that second martini now. *4:58PM* Juan Williams says President Obama won't "focus on the nitty gritty." In other news, I won't be focusing on club soda with a twist of lemon. *5:01PM* OK, here's one tiny little early preview for you: "It's all Bush's the Republicans' Blue Dog Democrats' Oops, can't say that the Republicans' fault." *5:02PM* The President is on. *5:03PM* "We've saved jobs! We can't count them, but trust us!" *5:04PM* The US isn't prepared to compete in the 21st Century? How many more industries do we need to nationalize before we're ready to compete in the 19th? *5:05PM* I still don't get where this guy has the nerve to say that he's going to save money on anything, and reduce the deficit by one thin dime. Has he not seen his own waste, fraud, and red ink? *5:05PM* "How does my family benefit?" We're working on it. Now sit down and shut up. *5:06PM* Now as I understand it, the "public option" will dictate what the private options must offer, and how much they must charge. So how do I keep my existing coverage again? *5:06PM* "Primarily for the richest Americans." The word "primarily" is new, yes? *5:07PM* Oh, so I benefit because I'll get a crappy plan, but my neighbor up the hill in the better neighborhood will pay for it. *5:08PM* Eliminate Medicare waste! That's fine. So why not start there? *5:08PM* When you hear a politician bemoaning the horse race aspect of politics, it's because he's losing the argument. *5:09PM* "I have great coverage." Fine, Mr. President. Then either YOU take OUR public option, or give US your coverage. Mmmkay? *5:10PM* "We will pass reform that does four contradictory things." Or at least that's what I heard him say. *5:10PM* Now, the press gets its turn. *5:11PM* First question boiled down to: Where's the leadership? And then there was talk about premiums. *5:11PM* Other advanced countries don't eat quite so many Chee-Tohs, Mr. President. *5:12PM* First impression: He's talking details and numbers. This is lousy salesmanship. Health care ain't double-pane windows, Mr. President. *5:14PM* And, he's still selling this as a tax-the-rich scheme. But the numbers don't add up, even according to the CBO. *5:15PM* "Waste in the system?" Dude, in government programs, that's a feature, not a bug. *5:16PM* "If we don't change, we can't expect a different result." OK, fine. Since government has been driving up prices, let's have less of that instead of more. Just sayin'. *5:17PM* More bad salesmanship: Telling folks they won't get "five different tests." Most people want the damn tests. *5:18PM* From Reuters: "Why the rush?... Will support collapse?" *5:18PM* He's rushed because he gets letters. Is anyone buying this? *5:19PM* "The default position is inertia." It's Newtonian politics! Only without the math! *5:20PM* "I'm not going to sign a bill that adds to the deficit." Well, that would be a really nice change from the last six months. *5:22PM* He keeps talking about "health care inflation." But inflation is when the same dollars buy you less, or more dollars buy you the same stuff. Isn't health care improving every year? If we dial back prices, won't we be dialing back care? *5:23PM* From someone: "Is this going to cover all 47 million uninsured?" Answer: "I want to cover everybody. The truth is..." And then Obama bemoans the fact that some people won't want to pay. Why not just tax the bastards, eh? Oh, wait... *5:24PM* Just think: Mountain and Western time zones are watching this pre-primetime, because NBC finds Susan Boyle more attractive than Barack Obama. *5:25PM* Follow-up: "Isn't this a fight inside the Democratic party?" *5:26PM* Answer: Dude, Republicans, suck, right? Entire Press Corps: [Nodding enthusiastically.] *5:28PM* Jake Tapper: "Experts say... there is going to have to be some sacrifice..." *5:29PM* Answer: "They're going to have to give up paying for things that don't make them healthier." Just like with public schools, EVERY FREAKING GODDAMN DOLLAR goes to education. Or, you know, maybe not so much. *5:30PM* Blue pill? Red pill? Is this The Matrix or Dr. Suess? *5:33PM* "The American people are understandably queasy about the deficit... trillions here, trillions there..." and then more talk about the Republicans. You know what? Last weekend, Obama explicitly said "give it to me" on responsibility for the economy. I know his promises have an expiration date, but couldn't that one have made it until, I don't know, Friday? *5:34PM* I saved almost two billion dollars on defense yesterday! So gimme 300 billion for health care, mmmkay? *5:35PM* "We inherited..." Please see my 5:33 comment. *5:36PM* Dude Who Looks Like a Younger, Soberer Chris Hitchens: "What kind of pain... are you calling on beneficiaries to make?" *5:38PM* Clever. On the sacrifice question, Obama started talking about Republican-approved reforms. The buck stops... to the right. *5:39PM* Blonde Lady: "Are you fulfilling your promised on transparency?" *5:39PM* Answer: "We have a lot of meetings." *5:41PM* Brunette Lady with the Brady Bunch Part: "Would you support a fee on risky activities?" *5:42PM* Answer: We're going to enact a 4.6% surcharge on the incomes of people who get drunk and have unprotected sex with strangers. Or with cloven-hooved animals. *5:43PM* There's a chance I'm drunk, but I swear I just heard Obama say he was going to tax stuff until the economy starts to grow again. *5:45PM* Oh, my --- Obama just said that the solution to government-created moral hazards is to impose more government. I need another drink, stat. *5:46PM* The Stapler Guy from Office Space: "Can you promise... the government will not deny any coverage... and will you and Congress abide by the public option?" *5:47PM* Answer: The Dude will "largely abide." *5:48PM* "With regulation, there will be improvement." Sometimes, all I have to do is quote. *5:49PM* Government is going to "make sure there's some competition out there" by homogenizing coverage and prices. *5:50PM* Oh my god. He's still talking. He's supposed to be nudging nervous Democrats back into the Reform camp. Instead, he's... hearing himself talk. I can't wait to see what Mickey Kaus has to say about this later. *5:52PM* That Jewish Dude from "The West Wing" Shaved Off His Beard: "[Mumbles incoherently about some clinic]" Answer: Hold the Mayo. *5:53PM* "Getting the politics out of health care" by having politicians take over health care. The mind --- and the liver --- boggles. *5:53PM* I missed the last question, because there was this lady old enough to think that wearing a bright red dress would get President Reagan to call on her, said something, and then there was joking about where Obama lives. *5:55PM* I have a couple of very nicely-marbled strips to grill, and a great big Cab Sauv to open. Is this thing over yet? Please? Pretty please? *5:56PM* Our black president is telling me that "race haunts us." Dude, it's not your race, it's your ideology. Mmmkay? *5:57PM* Final thought: In high school, I once spent an entire weekend trying to get this girl to unsnap the button fly on my 501s. That was less frustrating than tonight's press conference. *5:59PM* Juan Williams calls it "a lost opportunity" and doesn't expect the August deadline to be met. Or as we say on the internets: EPIC FAIL. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Article printed from Pajamas Media: *http://pajamasmedia.com* URL to article: *http://pajamasmedia.com/blog/drunkblogging-obamacare/* URLs in this post: [1] Dr. Melissa Clouthier: *http://www.melissaclouthier.com/2009/07/22/liveblogging-the-obama-address-tonight/* Click here <http://pajamasmedia.com/blog/drunkblogging-obamacare/?print=1#Print> to print. Copyright © 2008 Pajamas Media. All rights reserved. *UPDATE*: Here's my final take --- "In high school, I once spent an entire weekend trying to get this girl to unsnap the button fly on my 501s. That was less frustrating than tonight's press conference." Read the rest on the liveblog link above. 7 Comments 1. <http://pajamasmedia.com/vodkapundit/2009/07/22/presser-drunkblogging-live/#comment-1> frank martin <http://www.varifrank.com>: If Bush had made the case for Iraq like Obama just made his case for Health Care, our troops would have defected en masse. I'm going to do my best John McEnroe here and say "You cannot be serious". I thought the dead giveaway of the night was when he said that more regulation would help lower costs while pointing out that insurance companies where making record profits -- as if that were a bad thing. He seem to be saying "If only that profit could come out, we would all be better off!" He made a choice back in "career day" in high school, he chose not to go into medicine and chose the law instead. I applaud that decision, now if he would just stay true to that idea, we would all be better off. Jul 22, 2009 - 7:10 pm 2. <http://pajamasmedia.com/vodkapundit/2009/07/22/presser-drunkblogging-live/#comment-2> jaymaster: I missed the first 25 minutes. But no problem, I just went to your drunk blog and got caught up. And now that I've compared the transcript to your Cliff Notes like distillation (so to speak), you definitely nailed it. Oh yeah, it sucked big time..... Jul 22, 2009 - 8:18 pm 3. <http://pajamasmedia.com/vodkapundit/2009/07/22/presser-drunkblogging-live/#comment-3> Garrett: For all of our modern day wanton feminists: Undoing 501's = grab the top tab area and pull really hard. Proceed as your hormones dictate. As for the rest, you all know why Obamacare is stupid shit. I will not take up anymore of your drinking time. Jul 22, 2009 - 10:10 pm 4. <http://pajamasmedia.com/vodkapundit/2009/07/22/presser-drunkblogging-live/#comment-4> mountain maven: I couldn't bear to watch it. Is Obama toast yet? Jul 22, 2009 - 11:23 pm 5. <http://pajamasmedia.com/vodkapundit/2009/07/22/presser-drunkblogging-live/#comment-5> XCV: Your link for Belmont Club is outdated. All the worse since the new link is PJM-related. Jul 23, 2009 - 7:24 am 6. <http://pajamasmedia.com/vodkapundit/2009/07/22/presser-drunkblogging-live/#comment-6> jaymaster: mountain maven, Now that it's had time to sink in a bit, I've concluded it was even worse than it first seemed. It sucked on many levels. Content, delivery, style,... and this was with 90% softball questions! But I don't think you can use the word "toast". That's sure to be judged as racist.... Jul 23, 2009 - 9:33 am 7. <http://pajamasmedia.com/vodkapundit/2009/07/22/presser-drunkblogging-live/#comment-7> arhooley: I'm surprised at the general lack of news on it this morning. How many people actually watched it? How many of them were sober? Jul 23, 2009 - 9:52 am Tri Geek: I am off to visit the Baskin & Robbins down the street where "Our Great Leader" used to scoop ice cream as a high schooler. By the way, he attended the most expensive and exclusive private school in Hawaii. What a harsh upbringing. And all that talk about what a great B-ball player he is.....he didn't even start on a team made up of short Asian kids. I should have know he would throw a baseball like a ......... I won't say it. Jul 22, 2009 - 7:50 pm --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. For options & help see http://groups.google.com/group/PoliticalForum * Visit our other community at http://www.PoliticalForum.com/ * It's active and moderated. Register and vote in our polls. * Read the latest breaking news, and more. -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
