Obama calls health care summit with Republicans

The move marked Obama's most concerted personal intervention yet to salvage his top domestic priority, which is currently on life support.

WASHINGTON, February 7, 2010 (AFP) - In a new political gambit, US President Barack Obama Sunday called Republicans to bipartisan White House talks later this month in a bid to salvage his stalled health care reform plan.

Obama, who was already scheduled to meet Republican leaders this week, said he would call the opposition party back to the summit-style meeting after a congressional break between February 15 and 19.

The move marked Obama's most concerted personal intervention yet to salvage his top domestic priority, which is on life support amid a shifting balance of political power ahead of congressional elections in November.

Failure to pass the historic health care bill would cast deep doubt on prospects for Obama's already pared-down reform agenda, and inflict a damaging blow on his political authority in Washington.

"After the recess. I want to come back and have a large meeting, Republicans and Democrats to go through systematically all the best ideas that are out there and move it forward," Obama said in a live CBS interview.

The president outlined his new health care gambit in the interview on the pre-game show for the National Football League Super Bowl -- guaranteeing himself a huge captive audience watching on television.

Obama's offer came after he vowed on Saturday that he would overcome a "blizzard" of political opposition and salvage his health care reform effort, which is facing a deeply uncertain future in Congress.

Republicans have accused Obama and congressional Democrats of using their majority on Capitol Hill to systematically shut them out of the health care reform effort.

John Boehner, the top Republican in the House of Representatives, welcomed Obama's announcement, though offered few commitments with his party likely wary of the president's new political gambit.

"Obviously, I am pleased that the White House seems interested in a real, bipartisan conversation on health care," Boehner said in a statement.

Boehner called on Obama to abandon his bid to pass comprehensive reforms of America's mostly private health care system, and to start a "step-by-step" process to lower health care costs and expand access to treatment.

Senate Democratic Majority leader Harry Reid said that Democrats had tried to work with Republicans from day one on health care -- implying that the opposition party had always intended to sabotage the effort.

"Senate Democrats will not relent on our commitment to protecting consumers from insurance company abuses, reducing health care costs... and cutting the deficit."

Both the House of Representatives and the Senate have passed rival versions of health care legislation, but have been unable to reconcile the two bills.

After winning a Massachusetts seat last month, Republicans snatched away the Democratic 60-vote super majority in the Senate and gained the power to block the final bill with filibuster obstruction tactics.

Some moderate Democrats from conservative states meanwhile appear deeply uncertain about casting difficult votes to pass the now unpopular measure ahead of tough mid-term congressional polls in November.

Obama sharply warned Saturday that he would not give up on his effort to pass health care.

"Just in case there's any confusion out there, let me be clear. I am not going to walk away from health insurance reform," Obama said, in one of his most feisty speeches since his 2008 election campaign.

"I'm not going to walk away from the American people. I'm not going to walk away on this challenge. I'm not going to walk away on any challenge.'

On Friday, Obama had admitted health care reform could die in Congress, and warned Democrats they would face the judgement of voters in November's mid-term congressional polls if they quit the fight on his top priority issue.

The remarks were seen by some observers as a sign that Obama was contemplating admitting a damaging defeat on health care, a view his comments on Saturday seemed to be designed to dispel.