By T. Becket Adams • Washington Examiner
Charlie Rose and a trio of former Obama speechwriters laughed it up this week at the mention of the president’s infamous promise that that under the Affordable Care Act, “if you like your healthcare plan, you can keep your healthcare plan.”
The moment occurred during the Monday edition of “Charlie Rose: The Week,” as the host and former speechwriters Jon Lovett, Jon Favreau and David Litt discussed the president’s writing abilities and his gift for oration.
Lovett mentioned that he was most proud of the president’s more serious speeches on the economy and healthcare, and that’s when Favreau ribbed him for the “you can keep your plan” line.
“My point is, do you have equal impact on serious speeches? Because it’s about style, use of language, etc.?” Rose asked.
“I really like, I was very — the joke speeches is the most fun part of this. But the things I’m the most proud of were the most serious speeches, I think. Healthcare, economic speeches,” said Lovett.
Favreau interjected, “Lovett wrote the line about, ‘If you like your insurance, you can keep it.'”
“How dare you!” Lovett joked back.
The panel laughed and laughed.
“And you know what?” Lovett added later. “It’s still true!”
An estimated 4.7 million people were told in the fall of 2013 that their health insurance plans would be cancelled for noncompliance with the recently enacted federal healthcare law, according to the Associated Press.
The Obama administration reportedly knew in 2010 that 50-75 percent of the 14 million people in the United States who buy their insurance individually would probably receive cancellation letters, NBC News reported at the time.
On Nov. 7, 2013, Obama went on television to apologize for the mass cancellations.
Later, on Dec. 12, 2013, the fact-checking website PolitiFact gave President Obama the “Lie of the Year” award for promising repeatedly that people who liked their insurance could “keep it.”