Sen. Clinton expresses support for Presidential nominee Obama, discusses health care in convention speech

Former Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (N.Y.) on Tuesday spoke at the Democratic National Convention in support of presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Sen. Barack Obama (Ill.) and his proposals on health care and other issues, Dow Jones reports. According to Dow Jones, in "making the case for Obama," Clinton cited their joint support for "renewing the middle class, ending the war in Iraq, creating a universal health care system and boosting clean energy."

She said, "Those are the reasons I ran for president. Those are the reasons I support Barack Obama. And those are the reasons you should too" (Pulizzi, Dow Jones, 8/27). Clinton added, "I can't wait to watch Barack Obama sign a health care plan into law that covers every single American" (Pallasch, Chicago Sun-Times, 8/27).

Speakers at the convention on Tuesday "aimed squarely at the middle class" with a focus on health care and other economic issues that "many believe ... might drive the election results," the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports (Borowski, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 8/26).

Role for Clinton on Health Care

In related news, House Democratic Caucus Chair Rahm Emanuel (D-Ill.) and former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (S.D.) on Tuesday during a panel discussion in Denver said that Clinton would play a key role in the development of a health care proposal in an Obama White House. According to Emanuel, Clinton "has an expertise in health care" and "knows both the opportunities and the pitfalls, and you want that experience."

Obama policy director Heather Higginbottom, who also participated in the panel discussion, said that he would make the war in Iraq, health care and energy his three legislative priorities as president.

Emanuel said that Obama would have to move his health care proposal, "or a significant down payment on it," through Congress to help prevent gains for Republicans in the 2010 election. According to "On Call," "Daschle added that Obama might have to disaggregate his comprehensive health care and energy proposals to pass them piece by piece." Emanuel also called passing an SCHIP plan "one of his priorities" in the beginning of an Obama administration (Skalka, "On Call," The Hotline, 8/26).

Health Care as Election Issue

The Journal Sentinel on Tuesday examined how health care "has drawn more attention in this presidential campaign than in recent elections" and remains a "priority for most people." However, the "political reality is that health care reform is just one of many issues on voters' minds -- and even then, expanding coverage matters less than controlling the rise in health care costs."

The most recent Health Tracking Poll conducted by the Kaiser Family Foundation found that voters ranked health care as their fourth-most important issue in the election, after the economy, the war in Iraq and gas prices. According to the poll, when asked about specific health care issues, 53% of voters cited health care and insurance affordability as their top concern, compared with 18% who cited expansion of coverage to more residents (Boulton, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 8/26).

Broadcast Coverage

• C-SPAN on Tuesday broadcast the Clinton speech (C-SPAN, 8/26).
• CNN's "Newsroom" on Tuesday reported on a speech that presumptive Republican presidential nominee Sen. John McCain (Ariz.) delivered during the national convention of the American Legion. During his speech, McCain said that he would seek to reform the Department of Veterans Affairs health care system to allow veterans to obtain medical care at non-VA facilities (O'Brien, "Newsroom," CNN, 8/26).
• NPR's "All Things Considered" on Tuesday reported on the McCain speech (Robbins, "All Things Considered," NPR, 8/26).
• NPR's "Fresh Air from WHYY" on Tuesday included a comparison of the Obama and McCain health care plans. The segment includes comments from political scientist Jonathan Oberlander, author of "The Political Life of Medicare" (Oberlander, "Fresh Air From WHYY," NPR, 8/26).
• NPR's "Morning Edition" on Wednesday reported on the McCain speech (Robbins, "Morning Edition," NPR, 8/27).