Obama Hopes for "Civilized" Town Hall

By: Alex Sundby
Topics: Health Care

(CBS)

President Obama heads to Portsmouth, N.H., Tuesday for a town-hall meeting on the health-care legislation still pending in Congress. Protesters plan to voice their opposition for the Democrats' plan outside the meeting and could possibly bring the kinds of disruptions found at similar meetings for members of Congress inside the gym at Portsmouth High School.

White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs told CBS' "The Early Show" Anchor Harry Smith Tuesday how Mr. Obama would respond should anyone disrupt this afternoon's town hall.

"I think what the president will do is turn to that person and probably ask them to be civilized and give them an answer to their question," Gibbs said.

Gibbs noted he's attended more than 500 town-hall meetings Mr. Obama hosted throughout his political career.

"We've been to a lot of meetings where people didn't agree with us, but the tradition of a town-hall meeting is to give people information so that they can make a decision about a policy that impacts their lives," Gibbs said. "I know the president is excited about engaging the public again."

Such disruptions prompted top House Democrats to respond. Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Majority Leader Steny Hoyer called the disruptions "un-American" in an op-ed for USA Today.

Smith asked whether Mr. Obama expects Congress to deliver a health care plan by Columbus Day (Oct. 12).

"The president hopes he has a bill on his desk sometime this fall that he can sign and begin to put the insurance companies and the health care system back on the side of middle class America," Gibbs said.

Alex Sundby
Alex Sundby is an associate news editor for CBSNews.com

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by Professor_Zoom August 11, 2009 11:21 AM EDT: What is the big deal? Can't liberals, conservatives, and independents agree that the insurance and drug companies need to be regulated? Can't we agree that there needs to be more competition in the market. I don't care which way you lean politically, but these companies are screwing us. And even if we don't like it we still have to accept it because we don't have many options to choose from. If they were tightly regulated, and not allowed to pull the crap that they pull, then maybe we wouldn't be in this mess.; Reply to this comment


by pasmalltown August 11, 2009 10:51 AM EDT: LibsDontMakeSense August 11, 2009 10:16AM EDT -

Nice story and I'm happy for you, but there are a lot of Americans not as fortunate as you AND this story is two years old... You're welcome to stick with the staus quo if you wish, but your viewpoint/situation, what have you, is similar to the mood on Capitol Hill and White House. They have ALL the healthcare they will ever need ("I've got mine, and I'm not too concerned whether you get your's") and it is THAT attitude that's holding up a concensus on healthcare reform. They can afford to take a month long vacation, let the "have's" and "have not's" argue, fight, hurl insults at one another - muddy the waters and pretend they're doing something by having "townhall" meetings. If healthcare reform is/was(?) so essential and a "burning" issue, then why did Congress elect to convene until September? Shouldn't they be working on a compromise as we speak?; Reply to this comment


by endurorob August 11, 2009 10:41 AM EDT: Joe_NY_15 August 11, 2009 10:29 AM EDT

This will give you an idea of how the left views life,
"we need to discourage doctors from extending life" because of costs to society.....

WOW.....so much for respecting life of the elderly

Now you know why there is a provision for end of life counseling. And I believe Obamas first choice for HHS secretary, Tom Daschle, had this same view of the elderly. He may have had to pick a different HHS secretary but I have no doubt the vision has not changed.; Reply to this comment

by hamiltongrad August 11, 2009 10:37 AM EDT

ANSWER is to EXPAND MEDICAID AND MEDICAL SERVICES. PERIOD. And see what happens.

Reply to this comment


by AK-47_Justice August 11, 2009 11:15 AM EDT: Sure..... the typical republican't idea of throwing more money at every problem as we saw during the bush years, and not attacking the real problems of this "cesspool of waste and abuse" by the for-profit insurance company middlemen that provide no health care services, and doctors that get paid for quantity and not quality and innovation!

We already spend $2.5 Trillion or 18% of GDP on this health care debacle -- double what any other country in the world spends -- so we need true health care reform so that 1 million Americans are not declaring bankruptcy every year due to medical expenses, that 18,000 Americans don't needlessly die each year due to lack of health care and that 100,000 Americans don't die each year due to hospital mistakes!


by AK-47_Justice August 11, 2009 10:34 AM EDT: bfjones626
"When the hospital/pharma/insurance companies are forced to compete with the government run public option (something akin to Medicare I hope), then costs will come down, coverage and quality will go up and the Republicans will be seen as the Party of NO and on the wrong side of history once again."
**********************

endurorob
"Government run health care will nt create competition it will drive out the private sector."
***********************

Actually robbie, this just shows you're just parroting the usual foxnewsus propagandus from the millionaire talking heads that could care less about health care reform for average Americans.

The for-profit insurance companies saw profits soar 500% from 2000 to 2008, by denying coverage to their insured and dropping others by raising their premiums by incredible amounts -- all due to NO COMPETITION or regulation in the republican't "free market."

WAKE-UP! The republican'ts had years of majority rule claiming to want to lower health care costs, while sitting back and watching the premiums soar with middlemen insurance company profits soar.

Fact is......the for-profit insurance companies regulate care to increase profits and need true competition, since they provide NO HEALTH CARE -- just make health decisions that should be made by physicians and patients!

I welcome health care reform and competition for a change!; Reply to this comment


by hamiltongrad August 11, 2009 10:33 AM EDT: Free societies are not perfect.

BUT...Freedom ! .

The LEFT wants UTOPIA - IT WANTS to redistritube wealth, and services, leveling, rather than CREATING wealth. The LEFT wants to take away your FREEDOM.

That is why we are not getting a Reagan or Bush TAX CUT, just the opposite. No, you get less money.

That is why Obama and crew want to take what we have in HEALTH CARE and LEVEL it.

The truth is, the very poor and the illegals get the same health care, the same cardiac stints, the same fix for a broken skull, or cancers, sure.... they may have to wait in big rooms and ERs.

Obama does not know anything about health care in America.

IT IS NOT BRAIN SURGERY ///////////////////////

Slow down. consider putting all the people in certain categories on MEDICAL, it is already in place system that mostly works. See what happens.

This debate is not about health care, it is about your freedom and Utopian thinkers.; Reply to this comment

by hamiltongrad August 11, 2009 10:21 AM EDT

There is no crisis.
We have the best health care, albeit not perfect.

Do you want to wait with 'everyone else" in line, like the UK - are we stupid ???

Solution: EXPAND MEDI CAID/ Medical to cover those who choose not to be covered. = less $$ , also all the rest get to keep what we have.

Reply to this comment


by AK-47_Justice August 11, 2009 10:56 AM EDT: hamiltongrad
"There is no crisis. We have the best health care..."
*****************************

Totally delusional, since even the cato and heritage crusty idiots admit we have a very broken and over-priced health care system, costing far more than any other industrialized country in the world!

You are totally clueless, and just parrot the usual propaganda!


by AK-47_Justice August 11, 2009 11:07 AM EDT: Actually, if you researched your ignorant parroting of the foxnewsus propagandus, you would find that India is today on top of health care innovation through doctors trained in the U.S. -- certainly not here where doctors are paid for quantity, not quality and innovation!

You continue to show just how clueless the republican'ts can be!

by thusspokezara August 11, 2009 10:17 AM EDT

There is absolutely no evidence that Democrats intend to cut health care cost by encouraging euthanasia. It is true that end of life care is very very expensive and that we have to find ways of discouraging doctors from extending life beyond a point where the costs to society outweigh the benefits to the individual. I like the Democrats proposal to have a Federal Bureau for Gentle Passages (FBGP) that will regulate end of life care.

Reply to this comment


by Joe_NY_15 August 11, 2009 10:29 AM EDT: by thusspokezara August 11, 2009 10:17 AM EDT
We have to find ways of discouraging doctors from extending life beyond a point where the costs to society outweigh the benefits to the individual.
_______________________

This will give you an idea of how the left views life,
"we need to discourage doctors from extending life" because of costs to society.....

WOW.....so much for respecting life of the elderly

by cs4466 August 11, 2009 10:10 AM EDT

Beware a lot of the neocon posters here spreading lies and misinformation about President Obama's health care reforms are paid shills of the health insurance industry. Many are also paid to attend and disrupt the town hall meetings. And those that are not paid to do these things often do these things out of spite. It's a bitter, sad group of individuals.

But soon they'll have the same health care as everyone else. Not that that deserve it.

Reply to this comment


by AK-47_Justice August 11, 2009 10:36 AM EDT: Yep....I think that the screaming juvenile republicant's should be required to keep their for-profit health insurance, and blocked from any public option and competition, just so their loved insurance companies continue to rape them with higher and higher costs!


by Joe_NY_15 August 11, 2009 10:08 AM EDT: Of course it will be a Civilized Town Hall meeting, especially when you hand-pick who will attend, coach them on what to ask, and Obama without his Tell-me-what-to-say-Prompter, you never know.

Maybe Biden should attend, we need a few good laughs or gaffes; Reply to this comment