Obama Drops the Ball on Healthcare Leadership

President Obama has dropped the ball on leading the healthcare debate, his supposed top issue.

And it's causing a lot of Democrats to echo Bill Maher's sharp sentiments last week: "This is not getting the job done, and this isn't what I voted for."

Obama has badly blown it, thus far, on providing healthcare reform leadership for three main reasons:

• The Obama White House has not provided a coherent, detailed plan or legislative package for the healthcare reform that the President seeks and campaigned on.

  Instead, a massive, 650-page document, authored by Ted Kennedy and quietly quasi-blessed by Obama, was presented to key Congressional committees this week with three major sections still entirely blank.

• President Obama has neither explained his plan to the American people, nor addressed the myriad of legitimate worries Americans have about massive healthcare insurance changes.

  Instead, he orates in vague bromides and cheery, campaign-style generalities at town halls and interest groups conventions. Then sends his surrogates out to bob-and-weave with the press.

• The Obama White House hasn't told Americans either what his plan will cost, or how he plans for us to pay for it.

  And most frighteningly, the Obama White House seems to have no real idea what their healthcare reform ideas will cost, judging by Democrat's shocked embarrassment this week at the Congressional Budget Office's objective cost analysis of Sen. Ted Kennedy's plan.

It's easy, and great fun, to shop for the shiny luxury car of my dreams. It's dumb, though, to waste my time if I don't have the money to pay for it. It's even dumber if, knowing that my finances are limited, I don't ask the car's price.

President Obama's abdication of leadership, thus far, on his signature issue makes me painfully wonder: Has he done his homework, and the hard policy work, on healthcare? Does Obama do his homework, or is all about posing and posturing, then pushing the hard work down on others?

Or, as Bill Maher smartly said:

"...we're kind of wondering when you're going to actually do something. Sorry folks, but this President is not fighting for real healthcare reform."

Look here for much more on the healthcare reform debate. Next up: quick-reading pros & cons of each type of healthcare plan under consideration. To start, see Healthcare Plan Definitions, which translates all the mumbo-jumbo terms into everyday language.

(Photo taken on June 15, 2009 of President Obama addressing the AMA: Scott Olson/Getty Images)