Obama on health revamp: Debate is `not a game'

[babylonsister]

Obama to assail critics on health care overhaul

By BEN FELLER
Associated Press Writer


WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Barack Obama sought Wednesday to cast the intensifying health care debate in terms that matter to ordinary people, promising to offer more savings, security and treatment to millions. Assailing his critics, he declared, "This debate is not a game."

In remarks prepared for the start of his prime-time news conference, Obama said he was determined to help the people who write him letters or speak to him at town halls expressing frustration about paying their health care bills or hanging onto their coverage.

"This debate is not a game for these Americans, and they cannot afford to wait for reform any longer," Obama said. "They are looking to us for leadership. And we must not let them down."

The stakes are huge not just for everyday Americans, but also for Obama, who is putting much of his credibility on the line to gain passage of congressional legislation. His stepped-up public role comes as he faces rising criticism from Republicans, sliding public approval ratings and divisions within his party.

Holding his 10th extended news conference, Obama was renewing a message that the White House says he cannot pound enough: making health coverage affordable and sustainable is so vital that anything less will erode the economic stability of families, businesses and even the government.

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