"It's a Matter of Trust"

Daniel Henninger, on the opinion page of today's WSJ, explains the public's frustration with Obama on health care reform by quoting Billy Joel: "It's a matter of trust." The public just doesn't believe the government has any ability to cut cost, only to expand entitlements:

In his op-ed Sunday for the New York Times [Obama] said, "We'll cut hundreds of billions in waste and inefficiency in federal health programs like Medicare and Medicaid." Hundreds of billions? Just like that? This is nothing but an assertion by one man. It's close to Peter Pan telling the children that thinking lovely thoughts will make them fly.

When the AARP corrected the President's assertion that they had endorsed his plan, they said "AARP will not endorse a health care reform bill that would reduce Medicare benefits." They simply don't think this Congress and President are capable of reforming health care without killing it, and apparently a majority of Americans don't think so either.