Obama's Healthcare Rule Maker Writes Book

By Paul Bedard, Washington Whispers

There's one big reason why some are so confident President Obama will win his healthcare fight. He isn't just obeying the rules of the healthcare road; he hired the rule maker. David Blumenthal, Obama's health IT coordinator, has co-written the book on presidential health policy, The Heart of Power: Health and Politics in the Oval Office, due out July 15. It ends with eight rules for success, most of which Obama has followed. They include: Have passion, work with speed, arrive with a plan, publicly campaign for it, manage Congress, and avoid the weeds. One area not fulfilled is "hush the economists." Blumenthal and coauthor James Morone note that cost worries have stumped past efforts. Obama hopes not to face the last rule: "Learn how to lose."

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