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"Let's get this done... for the American people," President Barack Obama told the House of Representatives Saturday, a day before a crucial vote on health care reform.
Brimming with confidence despite the cliffhanger vote ahea, Obama extolled the virtues of the health care measure, calling it "a middle of the road bill... designed to help American people in an area of their lives where they urgently need help."
Obama addressed many details of the compromise legislation he said was the product of "a difficult process."
After decades of false starts and a year of tough negotiating, he stressed, "it is time to pass health care reform for America."
He recalled the divisive debate that included conservative Republican and Democrats worried about public funding of abortion and the perception of increased government control in private lives, but urged US lawmakers to vote from the heart.
"Don't do it for me. Don't do it for the Democratic Party. Do it for the American people. They're the ones who are looking for action right now," he said.
"There are some things I would like to see that's not in this legislation. But is this the single most important step that we have taken on health care since Medicare? Absolutely!" he added.
To lawmakers worried about the November midterm elections, renovating a third of the Senate and all of the House, and how Sunday's vote would affect their chances, Obama clearly thought passing the health care measure would be a plus.
The health care bill, said Obama, "will end up being the smart thing to do politically because I believe the good policy is good politics."
"This is one of those times where you can honestly say to yourself, Dog-gone it, this is exactly why I came here. This is why I got into politics," Obama told the assembly of lawmakers.
"And this is the time to make true on that promise. We are not bound to win, but we are bound to be true."
