Obama’s Non-Apology Apology for Obamacare

Yesterday, President Obama spoke with Chuck Todd of NBC News to “apologize” for the countless negative consequences America have faced from the rollout of Obamacare.

“I am sorry that they are finding themselves in this situation based on assurances they got from me,” Mr. Obama said.

The claim that people would be able to keep their insurance was central to the political case for Obamacare. This interview was given in hopes of boosting Mr. Obama’s 39% approval rating, but it is not clear just what he was apologizing for. He has campaigned for years on blaming the insurance companies, which is the same messaging Democrats will continue using in the 2014 election cycle. Initially, when 3.75 million Americans received cancellation, Mr. Obama told them their plans were “substandard” or “cut-rate.” All along, the messaging from the Obama Administration has been that Americans do not know what type of insurance they need, so government will pick a plan for them.

Mr. Obama knew exactly what the outcome of his namesake policy would be. Healthcare.gov, with its almost unlimited budget, was destined to fail as the site was built by political cronies and involved too many massive government bureaucracies having to share real-time data. Government, by its very nature, cannot manage an insurance market as well as the private sector.

The American people have watched their President lie. And as his policies cause more Americans to lose their insurance or are priced out of the market, this blatant deception is hurting Americans. America needs more than apologies.