 "Photo: Vince Salamone/The Diamondback")
President Barack Obama's rally for health care reform in the Comcast Center yesterday was a throwback to the campaign trail.
In a stark deviation from his speech to Congress last week, Obama's plea for young voices to join the push for his health care reform was laden with references to the university and to the impact of health care reforms on young people. The boisterous crowd responded enthusiastically and frequently interrupted the president with cheers and applause.
The Comcast Center, true to form, was alive with school spirit — students chanted, cheered and did the wave while the marching band played. In rolled-up shirtsleeves and a tie, Obama, too, seemed more likely to be attending a basketball game than defending his political agenda.
"Hello, Maryland!" Obama said to a roar of approval, wishing the Terps good luck on their football game this weekend. "Maybe I'll even rub Testudo's nose before I leave."
Crowds began lining up outside the arena's doors around 3:30 a.m. to attend the rally, despite university officials asking students to hold off until 5 a.m.
Obama reiterated many of the points featured in his speech to Congress last week — reducing waste and fraud in Medicare to primarily finance the reform, forbidding private insurers from rejecting anyone on the basis of poor medical history, and creating an insurance exchange marketplace where individuals and small businesses can shop for an insurance plan.
The government-run public insurance option that has drawn national debate, Obama said to the crowd, is included in his health care plan, but only for those who want it.
"Let me be clear, it would only be an option. No one would be forced to choose it," Obama said. "No one with insurance would be affected by it. But what it would do is provide more choice and more competition, and put pressure on private insurers to make their policies affordable and treat their customers better."
Obama emphasized that there would not be a government takeover of health care under his plan, drawing a comparison that kept his audience in mind.
"We've got public universities and private universities; nobody says that we're taking over private colleges," he said. "What we're doing is giving students a choice. You should have a choice the same way in your health care."
Throughout Obama's speech, he chose statistics that reflected the university's demographic. He cited statistics relating to young people: more than one-third of all young adults, including those with insurance, have trouble paying medical bills, and one-fourth of all young adults are paying off medical debt, he said.
Obama also assured the crowd that funds for the plan would not add to the deficit that students would eventually have to pay off.
The president noted that graduates, who no longer qualify for their parents' insurance policies, often are not eligible for coverage under their employers and feel invincible enough to do without.
"You think you're invulnerable," Obama said. "I know I did."
Under his plan, he said, students will be able to keep their parents' coverage until age 26, or will be eligible to purchase their own insurance plan.
Obama also made reference to the university's new mandate that all new students must have health insurance.
"This school should be proud that it requires everyone to have health insurance," he said.
Before Obama spoke, Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke gave a short speech on the urgency of providing affordable, quality health care, followed by junior criminology and criminal justice and psychology major Rachel Peck, who took the podium to speak about her battle with papillary thyroid cancer and to introduce the president.
University President Dan Mote and state politicians also attended the speech, including Gov. Martin O'Malley, Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.), Sen. Benjamin Cardin (D-Md.), Rep. Elijah Cummings (D), Rep. Donna Edwards (D) and Rep. Chris Van Hollen(D).
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http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2009/9/18/783895/-The-Teabagger-Socialist-Free-Purity-Pledge
The left- which sees the fact that the vast majority polled in other Countries do not want the American system, while the majority in America want another system.. And how we spend more per capita per person on health care than any other country..
And the right- that based on this thread (and other statements in Congress etc.) refuse to acknowledge these facts or even debate the real issues, but rather call the proponents of health care reform "brainwashed", "airheads", etc.; and spread rumors that there will be "death panels" and "totally socialized medicine".
And then they wonder why their party and movement daily continues on a path of irrelevancy.
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