From PRI, Public Radio International and KCRW Santa Monica, this is To the Point.

Healthcare reform, the angry crowds, and the public option.

Hello again, I'm Aron Alney, and this is To the Poet from Public Radio International.

A daily look at the issues Americans care about most.

On a Sunday talk show, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said the so-called

public option is not an essential part of health care reform. But before the day was out, the White

House insisted Sebelius misspoke and that the president still thinks the public option's the best

way to go.

Meantime, Blue Dog Democrats are still being challenged by crowds that are clearly riled up about much more than health care reform.

Is the White House muddling the message?

Is it being diverted, even intimidated by the number of protesters and the volume of their voices.

First, here's the news.

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T. MacArthur Foundation, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, dedicated to the idea that all

people deserve the chance to live a healthy, productive life. Information at gatesfoundation.org.

Hello again, Warren. I'm in only. Back with To the Point. Two weeks into the congressional recess,

angry crowds are still showing up to vent their anger against health care reform. Is the Obama White House caving in on a controversial provision? Will it lose liberal Democrats in the effort to appease Republicans? First, this news update, speaking to the Veterans of Foreign Wars Convention in Phoenix today, President Obama explained his build-up in Afghanistan.

He said American troops are protecting the daily lives of Afghans and their right to participate

in this week's presidential elections. He added this. This is not a war of choice. This is a war of

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