Journalist defends comparison drawn between ObamaCare woes, Katrina

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Ron Fournier defends column about the health care crisis

Fournier says we should be comparing presidents, learning from history

The reporter who drew criticism for saying the rocky health care launch could be President Obama’s Hurricane Katrina or Iraq moment is defending his comparison, telling Fox News’ Megyn Kelly there is a real correlation between how Obama and President Bush handled the crises politically and how public viewed them as a result.

Ron Fournier of the National Review dismissed liberal backlash against his column on “The Kelly File,” saying those suggesting he is comparing the crises on a quantitative level are using the “oldest trick in the book” to discredit his argument.

“Of course I'm not comparing the crises," Fournier said, "there is not comparison quantitatively between Iraq and Katrina and ObamaCare. There hasn’t been thousands of deaths with ObamaCare."

Fournier said, however, recent polls that say Obama is at a similar approval rating to Bush's  at similar point in his presidency demonstrate how the presidents handled the events has had comparable impacts on public perception.

“Soon as a president loses that competency and credibility with the public, which Bush did in 2005 and President Obama is now, they are toast, especially in their second term," he said.