July 21, 2009 5:35 PM
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Obama: I Won't Sign A Bad Health Care Bill
In an exclusive interview Tuesday, CBS News' Katie Couric asked President Obama if there is "any flexibility" on the August deadline he has set for health care reform. Couric noted that some Democrats are saying that when you move too fast you make mistakes.
"I want to keep the pressure on," Mr. Obama said. "Because we're making steady progress, people are working hard…[and] really digging in and getting to know how can we make sure that we're preserving peoples' choice of plan and option if they already have health insurance. How can we reduce costs. How can we make sure the pre-existing conditions don't bar people from getting health insurance. If we figure out all those things over the next several weeks, then I think the American people are going to be happy with the end product."
"Here's what I won't do," he continued. "I won't sign a bill that I think does not reduce costs, does not keep deficit neutral, and does not benefit middle class families in America. So I want to put the pressure on, but ultimately, the test is, is this a bill that is going to be better for the American people or not? And if it's not, then, we'll keep at it."
You can watch more of the interview with the president tonight on the CBS Evening News with Katie Couric. The full interview will be posted on CBSNews.com Tuesday evening.
"I want to keep the pressure on," Mr. Obama said. "Because we're making steady progress, people are working hard…[and] really digging in and getting to know how can we make sure that we're preserving peoples' choice of plan and option if they already have health insurance. How can we reduce costs. How can we make sure the pre-existing conditions don't bar people from getting health insurance. If we figure out all those things over the next several weeks, then I think the American people are going to be happy with the end product."
"Here's what I won't do," he continued. "I won't sign a bill that I think does not reduce costs, does not keep deficit neutral, and does not benefit middle class families in America. So I want to put the pressure on, but ultimately, the test is, is this a bill that is going to be better for the American people or not? And if it's not, then, we'll keep at it."
You can watch more of the interview with the president tonight on the CBS Evening News with Katie Couric. The full interview will be posted on CBSNews.com Tuesday evening.
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Brian Montopoli Brian Montopoli is the senior political reporter at CBSNews.com.
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