In a pathetic act of desperation, CNN's Carol Costello whined that President Obama is not defending his own health care bill well enough and that Mitt Romney is not standing behind his own health care bill from Massachusetts. Costello's lament aired on Thursday morning's Newsroom.
"I mean, secretly, don't you wish Mitt Romney would help us understand his signature accomplishment as Massachusetts governor, health care complete with a mandate and everything?" she implored the audience. "And don't you wish President Obama would really explain the plan's impact on our economy?" [Video below the break. Audio here.]
Costello was pushing the same liberal narrative that her colleague, Brooke Baldwin, advanced the day before – that Republicans should give up the fight against ObamaCare now that it is the law of the land. Baldwin confronted Republican Senator Roy Blunt (Mo.) if he wasn't being a "sore loser" by continuing to oppose ObamaCare.
Multiple polls have shown that more Americans oppose the bill than support it, but CNN still thinks the debate is over.
"Seriously. We fought about health care bitterly for months and months. It widened the partisan divide that was already there. Do we really want to go there again?" moaned Costello.
Later on, she scolded Republicans for criticizing a t-shirt sold on President Obama's website calling ObamaCare a "BFD," short for "big f***ing deal." Republicans called the shirt unpresidential, but Costello would have none of it.
"But this is just another example of how we cannot discuss this issue in a rational way," she lectured Republicans. "It's like why can't we just push all of that stuff aside and -- and – and talk about this health care law and make Americans really understand. Maria, why can't we do that?"
A partial transcript of the segments, which aired on CNN Newsroom on June 29 at 9:20 a.m. and 10:32 a.m. EDT, respectively, is as follows:
CAROL COSTELLO: Now is your chance to talk back on one of the big stories of the day. The question for you this morning -- Obamacare: Should we move on or fight anew? It's all over. (Laughs) Fat chance. The Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the health care law, and instantly the opponents of Obama care went off.
(Video Clip)
Rep. PHIL GINGREY (R-Ga.): I'm angry, mad at Chief Justice John Roberts.
Rep. MICHELE BACHMANN (R-Minn.): This is clearly unconstitutional.
This is a turning point in American history. We will never be the same again with this denial of liberty interest.
(End Video Clip)
COSTELLO: Politico reports that Republican Congressman Mike Pence compared the Supreme Court's decision to the 9/11 terrorist attacks. He later apologized.
House Republicans have already scheduled a vote to repeal the law. Mitt Romney, who's also vowed to repeal, says the court should have overturned the entire law.
Oh, really, said Democrat Nancy Pelosi, who could not resist this zinger.
(Video Clip)
Rep. NANCY PELOSI (D-Calif.), House Minority Leader: I don't know. Maybe he's going to pay for it out of his own pocket, but he's cover the pre- existing condition's costs of people who have, children who have pre- existing conditions. You cannot have it both ways.
(End Video Clip)
COSTELLO: Seriously. We fought about health care bitterly for months and months. It widened the partisan divide that was already there. Do we really want to go there again? I mean, secretly, don't you wish Mitt Romney would help us understand his signature accomplishment as Massachusetts governor, health care complete with a mandate and everything? And don't you wish President Obama would really explain the plan's impact on our economy?
He seemed to start doing that yesterday. But if we're going to go back to those angry town halls and talk of death panels, it's going to be a long hot summer. So, the talk back question today – Obama care: Should we move on or fight anew?
(...)
CAROL COSTELLO: Just to get this out of the way, Romney's people tweeted the BFD t-shirts were not presidential. That may be so. But this is just another example of how we cannot discuss this issue in a rational way. Why is that Ana?
ANA NAVARRO, Republican strategist: Well you know, I think the vast majority of people have discussed it in a rationale way. Certainly yesterday, Barack Obama discussed it in the right tone. Mitt Romney responded to it in the right tone. And the vast majority of people in Congress responded to it in a rational, logical way putting out arguments.
I think there have been some inappropriate things. It's also an emotional issue, and some people want to just spike the football. We saw that out of the DNC, we had a guy at the DNC tweeting out words that rhyme with "witches" and "truckers," that aren't appropriate speak certainly for somebody that's involved in running presidential campaigns. They are inappropriate.
But you know what, Carol, if the DNC, if they want to be inappropriate and un-presidential that's perfectly fine with me. It works for my purposes.
COSTELLO: But see -- but see – this is just the kind of thing I'm talking about. It's like why can't we just push all of that stuff aside and -- and – and talk about this health care law and make Americans really understand. Maria, why can't we do that?
(...)
CHARLIE ROSE: Let me run this by you. Because couldn't it also back fire for the Republicans? Because Mitt Romney has often said look, any time I'm not talking about the economy, it's not good. Now he's going to have talk about health care, and he's going to have to defend something that was inspired by Mitt Romney. How do you get around that? Anyone?
(Crosstalk)
CARDONA: That's exactly right -- that's exactly right, Carol. I think Mitt Romney right now is in a huge box. Because there is plenty of tape of him back when he supported not just RomneyCare but the individual mandate. And not only that, he talked about how he would love to see the individual mandate and his health care bill that he passed in Massachusetts be a model for the nation.
So this should be a happy day for Mitt Romney, because now it is not just a model for the nation but the law of the nation. And frankly, it is something that is going to help millions and millions of American families get health care coverage that couldn't get it before.
COSTELLO: Well let me ask Ana this – let me ask– Ana, you're a Republican strategist. So everybody knows this about Mitt Romney. Wouldn't it be better if he didn't talk about it so much?
