Obama: Process 'ugly,' reform will pass

WASHINGTON, March 17 (UPI) -- U.S. President Barack Obama Wednesday said he is confident Congress will pass healthcare reform legislation, but he conceded the process is "ugly."

In an interview with Fox News Channel, Obama said he was confident of passage "because it's the right thing to do." The president said the debate on healthcare "ends up being a little frustrating because the focus entirely is on Washington process."

"And yes, I have said that is an ugly process," Obama said. "It was ugly when Republicans were in charge, it was ugly when in Democrats were in charge."

Asked whether he was concerned his presidency might suffer if the measure doesn't pass, Obama said, "Well, if it doesn't pass, I'm more concerned about what it does to families out there who right now are getting crushed by rising healthcare costs and small businesses who were having to make a decision, 'Do I hire or do I fix healthcare?'"

Many opponents of reform under consideration in Washington argue it will mean a government takeover of one-sixth of the U.S. economy. Obama said "this is one-sixth of the economy that right now is a huge drag on the economy" and said the legislation would fix that problem "in a way that is sensible, that is centrist."

Administration officials have called Fox News Channel an arm of the Republican Party. Fox officials defended its news department, taking great effort to draw distinctions between its reporters and its stable of political commentators, The New York Times said Wednesday.

During a news briefing Tuesday, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs was asked whether Obama's appearance on Fox would change any minds about the healthcare debate raging in Washington. He said it was "certainly worth a shot."