Baucus Says Obama 'Not Helping' on Health-Care Tax

[Hissyspit]

Source: Bloomberg

Baucus Says Obama ’Not Helping’ on Health-Care Tax (Update1)
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By Laura Litvan

July 16 (Bloomberg) -- Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus said he hopes a bipartisan compromise on health-care legislation can be reached today, even as he complained that President Barack Obama is “making it difficult.”

Baucus, a Montana Democrat, said Obama’s opposition to the idea of taxing health-care benefits is “not helping us.” Baucus had planned to offset about $320 billion of the cost of legislation overhauling the health-care system by ending an income-tax exclusion for employer-paid health benefits. Obama and Senate Democratic leaders have pressed him to consider other options.

“He does not want the exclusion,” Baucus said, referring to Obama. “That’s making it difficult.”

White House spokesman Bill Burton said any disagreement over such a tax is a small dispute in a “great week” in which both the Senate and House are making progress with versions of the health-care legislation.

Read more: http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601070&sid=aTk.jX68vCQ0

[DonCoquixote]

1. HA!

To think, if Dinos like this idiot were not making it difficult, we might have something like an actual democratic agenda, as opposed to a bunch of dixiecrats trying to become the new centre-right, oh, that and there would be Healthcare.

[DonCoquixote]

2. HA!

To think, if Dinos like this idiot were not making it difficult, we might have something like an actual democratic agenda, as opposed to a bunch of dixiecrats trying to become the new centre-right, oh, that and there would be Healthcare.

[jody]

3. Obama should ask HRC about how to fail to pass a national health care plan. nt

[Winterblues]

7. Is there some Whitehouse Health Care Reform group equivelent to Clinton's?

I know it is easy for someone like you to dump all the blame on Hillary but if you recall Democrats had an even larger majority in 1991 yet Health Care Reform did not happen..

[jody]

8. Mea culpa, I did not mean to blame HRC, only to point out how difficult it is to pass monumental

bills like health care requiring compromise among at least 51 senators and 218 congresspersons who represent such diverse constituents as those in New York City (population 8,363,710) and Kupreanof, AK (population 23).

The most recent failure was with HRC & Bill's efforts that failed to win congressional approval.

IMO it was congress that failed, not Bill & HRC.

[quidam56]

4. politician$$$ and profit machine$$$

As a former health care giver, I am shocked and saddened to see what has become of health care in America. $ 1. 4 million is being spent per day in DC by the health care lobbyists so your elected representative is getting taken care of and has quality health care we pay for and can't afford ourselves for our families, I know what is deemed, defended and supported in Tennessee and Virginia as quality health care and clearly profit care comes ahead of patient care. http://www.wisecountyissues.com/?p=62 MRSA ( methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureas ) is infesting our communities because filthy, uncaring hospitals and emergency rooms are breeding them and spreading them into our schools, homes, restaurants. How many more Americans' will be diseased or die while 74 % of Americans' are begging for health care reform ? More people died in America last year from MRSA complications than AIDS. When MRSA and a flu bug start mixing, it won't be pretty and we are being infected by the very health care system we depend on and trust to keep us safe and healthy. If we had "the best health care" in the world then why does RAM ( Remote Area Medical ) come to Wise County, Virginia year after year so people can go to the fairgrounds and stand in a line like cattle in the hot July sun just to see a health care provider ??? America's health care system is a disgraceful sham !

[Warren Stupidity]

5. Which 'US' is that shit talking about?

Hey Max, the House has figured out how to pay for it: TAX THE RICH. Take your poison pill tax working people's health benefits and go home.

[CanonRay]

6. Not helping who, Max?

The Health Care industry?

[No Elephants]

9. Not helping the Blue Dogs tear themselves from under the armpit of the Republicans long enough to

vote for this bill.

You know the bill I mean, right?


The health care bill that has almost 200 Republican amendments in it already, even though the Republicans promise not to vote for it anyway.

That bill.

[Spazito]

10. Geez, Baucus does nothing but whine...

The good thing, imo, is that if Baucus is whining it means he's NOT getting his way so WHINE AWAY Mr. Baucus, lol.

[lindisfarne]

11. Imagine that - Democrats NOT endorsing Baucus's republican agenda.n/t