THE ISSUE: Pres. Obama’s failure to generate bipartisan cooperation at the health-care summit.
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President Obama saying to Sen. John McCain, “We’re not campaigning anymore. The election is over,” was rude, uncalled for and meant to rub salt in the wounds of a man who already bears enough wounds from serving his country (“DC Health-Clubbing,” Feb. 26).
The political arena is a place to debate, not to insult and minimize a fine American hero like McCain.
McCain proudly served in the military for more than 20 years, including more than five years as a POW, during which time we can only imagine the hell he went through being tortured and beaten.
McCain is a recipient of the Silver Star, Bronze Star, Legion of Merit, Purple Heart and the Distinguished Flying Cross, and he is 74-years old — old enough be Obama’s father.
America owes this man a debt we could never repay, and Obama owes him an apology.
Cronin Miller
Brooklyn
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I think Obama hurt his cause at the recent health-care summit.
Instead of being conciliatory, he was divisive. He came across as arrogant, rude, disrespectful, hostile, condescending and rigid.
This is no way to get bipartisan support.
Kenneth Zimmerman
Huntington Beach, Calif.
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What the televised health-care summit proved was that Obama, who continues to ignore the will of the electorate in trying every tactic to shove ObamaCare into law, is at the peak of his arrogance.
This was not an honest bipartisan debate or discussion. Democrats, mostly moderator Obama himself, did the lion’s share of the talking because, as he explained, “I’m the president.”
Obama responded with an air of irritated impatience to Republicans who rebutted his points, and he rudely interrupted Sen. Lamar Alexander and gratuitously disrespected McCain.
As the superficial polish rubs away, Obama repeatedly is revealed to be politically immature — an outstanding orator with an obsessive agenda whose leadership skills are wobbly at best.
Susan M. Silver
Manhattan
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What a joke to think that there could be a bipartisan summit.
Any ideas brought forth by the “Party of No” were squashed by the “Party of No, We Don’t Care About Your Ideas.”
The exchange between the president and McCain was arrogance personified.
McCain was speaking about an issue of “sweetheart deals,” and Obama’s response, that they are not campaigning, was totally off the mark.
This “I’m right, you’re wrong” attitude is typical of this administration.
Sam King
Manhattan
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The president’s bipartisan health-care summit was an exercise in futility, a payback to Obama’s far-left supporters and a sure way to end the careers of his spineless followers in the House and Senate.
A majority of the American people have said no to this outrageously expensive, tax-inducing bill.
Doesn’t this president listen, or does he not understand the meaning of “no?”
Patricia O’Hanlon
The Bronx
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Obama is setting new records for arrogance, gall and elitism, and the summit was his latest piece of hypocrisy.
Obama rudely tells McCain that “the campaign is over,” but he wouldn’t dream of heeding his own admonition.
All I heard from him and the lemmings disguised as caring Democrats was a repetition of their worthless agenda.
They seem eerily incapable of understanding that 60 percent of Americans don’t want their snake oil.
To the detriment of the Democrats’ plan for socializing our medical care, the nation of late has come to realize that we do, indeed, have the world’s best health care.
Myron Hecker
New City