Word: carefulness
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...Read TIME's interview with President Obama on health care reform...
Throughout much of the yearlong health care reform debate, political posturing and partisan vitriol often seemed to eclipse any serious discussion of policy. Who could consider the merits or dangers of the excise tax or sweeping new insurance regulations while Republicans and Democrats were slugging one another daily on cable news, shouting about government takeovers and the Party of No? But in fact there were genuine debates about which ideas and tools are best for reining in health care costs or expanding access. Those days, however, are long gone...
...That much is clear in the run-up to the bipartisan health care summit that President Obama is scheduled to host on Thursday - and in the reaction to the compromise plan he put out to start the week. For better or worse, there now seems to be room only for partisan posturing, jockeying, optics and framing. If Democrats win this game, they may still be able to pass health reform. If Republicans prevail, they will hand Obama a stunning defeat that could set the tone for the 2010 midterm elections. (See pictures of the health care debate...
...over." This idea gained no traction, and Republicans realized they could not skip the meeting - it's hard politically to turn down an invitation to be bipartisan. Boehner then sent a follow-up open letter deriding congressional Democrats for "plotting legislative trickery" to pass health reform. (See 10 health care reform players...
...already adopted all their favorite Republican ideas and won't be adding any major new ones to their reform legislation. (One possible exception is medical-malpractice reform. Obama has said he's open to the idea, which is often cited by Republicans as a major driver of rising health care costs.) In a sign of how little value Obama places on Republican votes at this point - or how unobtainable he believes them to be - the White House reform plan includes a large new tax on unearned income. (Read "Can Obama Rebuild Bipartisan Trust...