Obama To Call for Universal Health Care

In his speech to Congress tomorrow at 8 pm eastern, Obama is going to come out for health care for all, according to Chuck Todd @chucktpolitical. BUT, universal health care doesn't necessarily = public option. BUT, most liberals are bent on public option for some reason and they believe they've already compromised by not having a single payer system, so it will be interesting to see how that plays.
This just in from the WSJ:

President Barack Obama, in a high-stakes speech Wednesday to Congress and the nation, will press for a government-run insurance option in a proposed overhaul of the U.S. health care system that has divided lawmakers and voters for months.

White House officials say the president will detail what he wants in the health-care overhaul, as well as say he is open to better ideas on a government plan if lawmakers have them.

Democratic plans call for requiring most Americans to have health insurance. Failure to comply could cost families as much as $3,800 a year, according to a Senate proposal.

The president is likely to make clear that a government-run insurance plan, known as the "public option," will not provide a level of subsidies that give it an unfair advantage over private insurers, according to aides familiar with the speech preparations. WSJ

Robert Gibbs answers public option questions from the press today. Obama will give new specifics Gibbs says:

Gibbs: Obama Consistent on Public Option

Gibbs' bottom line: the public option is the preferred option. Obama is NOT abandoning the public option.

It's important to watch what Howard Dean had to say on this.
Gibbs has said all along that Obama doesn't want to draw lines in the sand--saying public option or nothing-- because he doesn't want to stifle the debate. Some have said that hasn't been wise. I tend to think that with the violent and disruptive town halls out of the way, it's all uphill from here.

Now the media is insisting Obama isn't being consistent on the public option but they were the ones who jumped to conclusions. As I've noted when the media reported on Sunday this notion that Obama is abandoning the public option, Obama has been highly consistent on the public option. Here is Joe Biden reiterating Obama's stance in June. The media is just looking to make hay--they need to break news to stay competitive. Media outlets follow one another. In this instance, an AP reporter wrote up a story that Obama was abandoning the public option and the rest of the media followed.