Obama: Insurance Mandate No Tax Increase

Summary

---

highlights of Obama's interviews Economy: He isn't ready to close the book on the recession. Only last week Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said the worst recession since the 1930s probably was over. Afghanistan: He has no deadline for withdrawing U.S. forces and pledged there will not be an indefinite American occupation. He said he won't base any war decision on "the politics of the moment." Osama bin Laden: He said a tightly focused war strategy in Afghanistan will help with the hunt for the elusive al- Qaida leader. He said he knew getting bin Laden would be hard. Russia: He dismissed criticism that Russian opposition influenced his decision to scrap a European missile defense system. He said it will be a bonus if Russia's leaders end up "a little less paranoid" about the U.S. North Korea: He said the leader of reclusive North Korea is "pretty healthy and in control," based on the assessment the president got from Bill Clinton after Clinton returned to the U.S. in August with two American journalists who had been detained by the North. Kim Jong Il, 67, is believed to have suffered a stroke last year. H1N1 flu: The first family will follow the rules like every one else in waiting in line for the vaccine. "When folks say it's our turn, that's when we'll get it," he said. CIA interrogations: He does not plan to ask the Justice Department to end its criminal investigation into the harsh interrogations of suspected terrorists during the Bush administration. Seven former CIA directors have asked him to do just that. ACORN: He said there deserves to be an investigation into the hidden-camera video involving two employees at the activist group ACORN and a couple posing as a prostitute and her pimp. He did not say who should investigate. Cuba concert: He said cultural diplomacy with Cuba can be helpful to a point and that the effect of performances such as the concert set for Sunday in Havana by Colombian singer Juanes should not be overstated. Obama said the event carried no U.S. stamp of approval. Baseball playoffs: He's keeping close to the vest as long as his Chicago White Sox are still in the hunt. But he tipped his hand a bit with flattering mentions of the St. Louis Cardinals and the New York Yankees.

WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama says requiring people to get health insurance and fining them if they don't would not amount to a backhanded tax increase. "I absolutely reject that notion," the president said.

See the full content of this document

Extract

---

Obama: Insurance Mandate No Tax Increase

Blanketing most of the Sunday TV news shows, Obama defended his proposed health care overhaul, including a key point of the various health care bills on...

See the full content of this document

---