Bloomberg blasts Obama on health care, says he should be leader, Congress ‘separate but not equal’
New York Mayor Bloomberg bashed President Obama for putting an important health-care bill in the hands of Congress — instead of taking charge himself, The New Yorker magazine reports.
The president was targeted because he allowed Congress to draft health-care and financial-reform laws, Bloomberg told the weekly publication.
“I am sympathetic that he has a Congress that is partisan,” Bloomberg told me, speaking of Obama. “In the past two hundred and thirty-five years, we’ve probably had lots of partisan Congresses. His job is to try to bring the parties together. And when he works at it he has actually done some pretty good things.”
But he faults Obama for failing to invite members of Congress to join him on his regular rounds of golf, for instance, and for delegating to Congress the drafting of important regulatory legislation, such as the Dodd-Frank bill and the health-care law. “His job is to lead,” Bloomberg said. “He is the Chief Executive. It’s a separate but not an equal branch of government.” (Emphasis added)
Bloomberg also criticized Obama for failing to unite Democratic and Republican members of Congress.
“His job is to try to bring the parties together,” Bloomberg said.