Mr. SAM JOHNSON of Texas. Mr. Speaker, instead of inviting Republicans to a conference table with a blank sheet of paper, the President's decided to introduce the same trillion-dollar Washington takeover of health care the public has already rejected. In Texas, we call that paying for the same real estate twice, and the American people aren't buying it.
They have been trying to tell the President in every way possible to stop the backroom decisions and secret deals. This week's so-called ``bipartisan'' summit is just more of the same.
Instead of pressing the reset button, the President's hosting a photo op. Using the illusion of bipartisanship as a political tool is wrong. It's not fooling anyone. If the President and Democrat leadership are serious about coming together on health care reform, then let's get out the of corral and start from scratch.