The White House 'Doctored' Photo Op

Can this amateurish White House be any more cheesy that this? On Monday, Barack Obama was playing pretend that all of America's physicians support his risky socialized medicine scheme and supposedly had those "supporting" him show up in white lab coats. Just one problem: Most of them didn't play along.

So what do they do? Hand out white coats for those who didn't come prepared.

President Obama yesterday rolled out the red carpet -- and handed out doctors' white coats as well, just so nobody missed his hard-sell health-care message.

In a heavy-handed attempt at reviving support for health-care reform, the White House orchestrated a massive photo op to buttress its claim that front-line physicians support Obama.

A sea of 150 white-coated doctors, all enthusiastically supportive of the president and representing all 50 states, looked as if they were at a costume party as they posed in the Rose Garden before hearing Obama's pitch for the Democratic overhaul bills moving through Congress.

The physicians, all invited guests, were told to bring their white lab coats to make sure that TV cameras captured the image.

But some docs apparently forgot, failing to meet the White House dress code by showing up in business suits or dresses.

So the White House rustled up white coats for them and handed them to the suited physicians who had taken seats in the sun-splashed lawn area.

All this to provide a visual counter to complaints from other doctors that pending legislation is bad news for the medical profession.

"Nobody has more credibility with the American people on this issue than you do," Obama told his guests.

Heh, he said credibility.

The president was flanked by four white-coated doctors at a podium as he delivered his pep talk.

Speaking of credibility, a real doctor, Rep. Tom Price, isn't playing along.

The Republican National Committee shot back with a response from Rep. Tom Price (R-Ga.), who was an orthopedic surgeon before being elected to Congress.

"Today, the president wants you to believe that the medical community supports his government takeover of health care. Don't be fooled," Price said.

He said he had spoken to "thousands of my colleagues" who oppose the Democrats' legislation.

Of course since this was a complete charade, what Obama failed to disclose was the doctors present were there by invitation-only and were already part of a "Doctors for Obama" group.

But the doctors in the Rose Garden were all supporters of health care reform -- and the invitation-only guest list drew heavily from Doctors for America, a grassroots organization that backs a government-run insurance option.

Roughly 98 percent of the group's 15,000 members support a public insurance option, Doctors for America spokeswoman Megan Smith told FOXNews.com. She said roughly 40 of the 150 doctors who attended the meeting were from the organization.

Curiously missing from most news accounts were doctors who aren't on board.

"I didn't get an invitation to the garden party," said Dr. Paul Hochfeld, an Oregon emergency medicine physician and a member of the group who wrote a letter to Obama asking to be included in the summit.

"It just appears that President of the United States, at this point, is choosing to meet with only those who support his agenda," added Dr. Margaret Flowers, a Maryland pediatrician and congressional fellow for Physicians for a National Health Program, which had also sent a letter to the president requesting to participate in Monday's meeting.

"The current health reform being written in Congress, particularly that being put together in the Senate Finance Committee, will not be universal and will not control health costs," Flowers said. "It will not stop medical bankruptcies and foreclosures due to medical debt. It will not end the suffering and preventable deaths. It will not produce a health care system that uses our health care dollars wisely."