Obama's speech before Congress on health care reform
The tone of President Obama's Wednesday-night address to a joint session of Congress, both from the podium and the gallery, served to illustrate the degree of animosity that has arisen over this health care debate.
The low point, of course, was the mid-speech shout of "you lie!" from Rep. Joe Wilson, R-South Carolina. Wilson apologized for his lack of decorum, but he succeeded in underscoring the depth of the mistrust and poor communication that has hobbled this debate from the start.
There will be much more drama before this is over. But partisans on both sides of the issue should take heart that there is apparent agreement on several important aspects of the reform movement.
* Coverage for pre-existing conditions.
* Portability of coverage, especially for those who change jobs.
* Protection against cancellation or reduction of coverage.
Even if Obama's fondest hopes for health care reform fall flat -- and the president has clearly launched a new offensive designed to push beyond those basic but essential improvements -- Americans will be better protected against insurance-provider abuse than they are now.
What basis did Wilson have for his accusation? Since Obama hadn't established an unambiguous stance on coverage of abortion services or undocumented immigrants with such clarity until this speech, it would seem the congressman has none. But we won't know for sure until we have a final bill. Rest assured Obama will be reminded of his words at that time.
