Obama’s Broken Promise to NH
OBAMA’S BROKEN NEW HAMPSHIRE HEALTH CARE PROMISE
Candidate Obama Promised NH “Televised” Health Care Meetings, President Obama Holding Closed Door Negotiations
CONCORD – President Barack Obama is reneging on a promise he made during the New Hampshire Primary to hold “transparent” and “open” health care negotiations that would be televised on C-SPAN. The President and Democrat Congressional leaders are currently refusing to hold open meetings on the ongoing health care debate.
“Candidate Obama promised New Hampshire voters that he would open up all health care negotiations to the public. But President Obama is breaking that pledge by refusing to hold the transparent and accountable meetings he once supported,” said NHGOP Communications Director Ryan Williams. “It’s time for Paul Hodes, Carol Shea-Porter and Jeanne Shaheen to finally stand up to their party leaders and denounce the Democrats’ disgraceful backroom negotiations.”
In a 2007 editorial board meeting with the Keene Sentinel (11/27/07) Candidate Obama promised that he would hold open negotiations on health care legislation that would be televised on C-SPAN.
“We will have a public process for forming this plan and it will be televised on C-SPAN. I can’t guarantee that it will be exciting, so not everybody is going to be watching, but it will be transparent and accountable to the American people,” Candidate Obama told the Sentinel. “One of my jobs as the President is to guide this process so that it’s an honest process.”
President Obama announced this week that he will forgo open and transparent meetings and hold secret closed door negotiations with Democrat House and Senate leaders to reconcile competing versions of the legislation. The move has drawn bipartisan criticism and a formal request from C-SPAN CEO Brian Lamb to open the meetings to the public.
“President Obama, Senate and House leaders, many of your rank-and-file members, and the nation’s editorial pages have all talked about the value of transparent discussions on reforming the nation’s health care system. Now that the process moves to the critical stage of reconciliation between the Chambers, we respectfully request that you allow the public full access, through television, to legislation that will affect the lives of every single American,” wrote Lamb in a December 30th letter to Obama and congressional leaders (Boston Globe, 1/6).
CLICK HERE FOR VIDEO OF OBAMA’S NH PRIMARY PROMISE TO HOLD OPEN HEALTH CARE MEETINGS, or watch below…
Related: Much-anticipated Obama Transparency Fails to Materialize to Supporters’ Chagrin