Pakistan tells CIA chief no U.S. boots on the ground (Reuters)

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – CIA Director Leon Panetta told Pakistan's army and intelligence chiefs that he was concerned about a reduction of U.S. troops allowed in the country, but was bluntly told no American boots would be allowed on the ground, Pakistani military officials.

Panetta, nominated to take over as defense secretary next month, arrived in Pakistan Friday in an unannounced visit, his first trip since a secret U.S. raid that killed Osama bin Laden and severely damaged ties between the allies.

Pakistan's army said Thursday it had drastically cut down on the number of U.S. troops allowed in the country and set clear limits on intelligence sharing with the United States.

"He (Panetta) expressed concerns over the reduction of trainers and operatives. We told him very clearly 'no boots on our soil is acceptable'," said the Pakistani military official.

Panetta held talks with army chief General Ashfaq Kayani and Lieutenant General Ahmad Shuja Pasha, head of military intelligence.

The Pakistani military released a statement saying: "Both sides discussed the framework for future intelligence sharing."

A U.S. embassy spokesman said he had no information on the talks.

The United States kept Islamabad in the dark about the May 2 raid by Navy SEALs until after it was over, humiliating Pakistan's armed forces and putting U.S. military and intelligence ties under serious strain.

"We told him that we are clear. We don't want their people. Intelligence sharing is fine and we are ready for that," said another military official.

Washington was angered by the fact that bin Laden had apparently been living for years in a Pakistani town about a two-hour drive from the intelligence headquarters.

Pakistan has been under mounting pressure to prove it is a more reliable partner in the America's campaigns against Islamist militants launched after the September 11 attacks on the United States.

The United States believes the nearly decade-old war effort in neighboring Afghanistan cannot succeed unless Pakistan tackles insurgent safe havens near the border.

Friday, Afghan President Hamid Karzai, also a U.S. ally, arrived in Islamabad and asked Pakistan to help end the Taliban insurgency.

Pakistan, which supported the Taliban government that ruled Afghanistan from 1996 until its ouster in 2001 by U.S.-backed forces, will be crucial to any attempts to stabilize its western neighbor.

But Pakistan has often been accused of playing a "double game," promising the United States it will go after militants, while supporting some groups such as the Haqqani network, an allegation it denies.

U.S. commanders say the military effort in Afghanistan is being undermined partly by Pakistan-based militants.

The Haqqanis use safe havens in Pakistan's North Waziristan region to stage cross-border attacks against American troops in Afghanistan, and U.S. officials have accused Pakistani intelligence of ties to the group. Pakistan denies the allegations.

(Writing by Michael Georgy; Editing by Alex Richardson)

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Obama at Ground Zero: 'We will never forget'

During a solemn visit to New York City today, President Obama told a Manhattan firefighting crew that lost 15 members on 9/11 that the death of Osama bin Laden sends a strong message to both the nation and the world.

"When we say we will never forget, we mean what we say," Obama said during a fire station stop shortly before he laid a wreath at the site where the World Trade Center towers once stood.

After the wreath laying, Obama met with about 60 relatives of the nearly 3,000 people who died during the 2001 attacks that led to wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

The president also visited a Manhattan police station to speak with more of the first responders on Sept. 11. 2001, telling officers, "I am here basically to shake your hands and just to say how proud I am of all of you."

Last weekend's raid on bin Laden "sent a signal ... that we have never forgotten the extraordinary sacrifices that were made on Sept. 11," Obama said. "We did what we said we were going to do."

The president's first stop of the day came at the "Pride of Midtown Firehouse" at 48th Street and Eighth Avenue. Arriving to the applause of nearby crowd, Obama greeted each member of the company and then stopped to examine a plaque bearing the names of 15 firefighters who gave their lives on 9/11.

"This is a symbolic site of the extraordinary sacrifice that was made on that terrible day almost 10 years ago," Obama told company members.

The president then went in to lunch with crew now assigned to Engine Company 54, Ladder 4, Battalion 9. The president joked that he also visited the firehouse because "I heard the food was pretty good."

After the police station visit, Obama laid a wreath at Ground Zero. Our colleague Martha T. Moore reports:

Wreath laying site is between the two reflecting pools that mark the footprints of the towers, by a tree that was found growing on th site after the collapse and is called the Survivor Tree. It was taken away from the site, nursed back to health and returned to the site this year. Dignitaries included Rep. Peter King, R-N.Y.; Rep. Charles Rangel, D-N.Y.; and Govs. Chris Christie, R-N.J., and Andrew Cuomo, D-N.Y. New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg also attended.

Crowds with flags and cameras are strung along Church Street on the eastern edge of the 16-acre construction site.

Curtis Neal, 34, works as a super in building at 114 Liberty across from south edge of site. He thinks it's appropriate that Obama is here but worries that the Navy SEALS didn't get the right guy. "I wanted proof." Said he felt more certain after Obama spoke Sunday "but in the world we're living in anything is possible."

The White House closed Obama's meeting with 9/11 family members to the press. A statement said, "the families were selected in consultation with the National 9/11 Memorial staff and represent a cross section of family members from various 9/11 organizations who have been active advocating on behalf of 9/11 families."

In his remarks at the fire station, Obama also said that the commitment to making sure justice was done "is something that transcended politics, transcended party."

Spokesman Jay Carney said Obama wanted to visit the city in the wake of bin Laden's death "in order to recognize the terrible loss that New York suffered on 9/11 and to acknowledge the burden that families of the victims and the loved ones of the victims have been carrying with them since 9/11."

After a short plane ride from Washington, Obama choppered to a landing zone near Wall Street shortly after 11 a.m., with two limos and a pair of firetrucks waiting.

Also on hand to greet Obama: Former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani, who led the city after the World Trade Center attack.

During the visit to the firehouse, Obama lauded Giuliani for his "heroic acts" on 9/11.

THE PRESIDENT: Well, listen, the main reason I came here is because I heard the food is pretty good.

But to the Commissioner, to Mayor Giuliani -- who obviously performed heroic acts almost 10 years ago -- but most of all, to all of you, I wanted to just come up here to thank you.

This is a symbolic site of the extraordinary sacrifice that was made on that terrible day almost 10 years ago. Obviously we can't bring back your friends that were lost, and I know that each and every one of you not only grieve for them, but have also over the last 10 years dealt with their family, their children, trying to give them comfort, trying to give them support.

What happened on Sunday, because of the courage of our military and the outstanding work of our intelligence, sent a message around the world, but also sent a message here back home that when we say we will never forget, we mean what we say; that our commitment to making sure that justice is done is something that transcended politics, transcended party; it didn't matter which administration was in, it didn't matter who was in charge, we were going to make sure that the perpetrators of that horrible act -- that they received justice.

So it's some comfort, I hope, to all of you to know that when those guys took those extraordinary risks going into Pakistan, that they were doing it in part because of the sacrifices that were made in the States. They were doing it in the name of your brothers that were lost.

And finally, let me just say that, although 9/11 obviously was a high water mark of courage for the New York Fire Department and a symbol of the sacrifice, you guys are making sacrifices every single day. It doesn't get as much notoriety, it doesn't get as much attention, but every time you run into a burning building, every time that you are saving lives, you're making a difference. And that's part of what makes this city great and that's part of what makes this country great.

So I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart and on behalf of the American people for the sacrifices that you make every single day. And I just want to let you know that you're always going to have a President and an administration who's got your back the way you've got the backs of the people of New York over these last many years.

So God bless you. God bless the United States of America.

And with that, I'm going to try some of that food. All right? Appreciate you. Thank you.

USATODAY.com

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Obama lays wreath at Ground Zero, meets with families, firefighters, cops

NEW YORK — President Obama punctuated his success in tracking down Osama bin Laden with a visit Thursday to those on the front line of the terrorist attack — families and colleagues of those killed on Sept. 11, 2001.

President Obama hugs Diane Wall, from Rumson, NJ, as her daughters and a family friend watch. Both families lost fathers on 9/11.

Under sunny skies and the unfinished bulk of the first tower to rise at Ground Zero, Obama laid a wreath on the plaza of the emerging 9/11 Memorial on the site of the World Trade Center. In a solemn, silent ceremony, he placed flowers in front of a tree that survived the towers' collapse and hugged and greeted family members, police officers and firefighters.

He gave a fist bump to Christopher Cannizzaro, 10, who was an infant when his firefighter father, Brian, was killed. In return, Christopher gave the president a prayer card for his dad.

His mother, Jackie Cannizzaro-Hawkins, said she told the president, "Thank you. Thank you for seeing it through." Obama's visit to the WTC site "means the world to me. It was appropriate. He never forgot."

Obama hugged Payton Wall, 14, and her friend Madison Robertson, 14. Both girls from Rumson, N.J., lost their dads on 9/11 and had written letters to the president several months ago.

They also had written to teen idol Justin Bieber. "I just wanted to share my story," Payton said.

"He just said how proud of us he is," Madison said.

En route to the ceremony, the president ate lunch — including eggplant parmigiana — at a firehouse, Engine 54, which on 9/11 lost all 15 members on duty.

"When we say we will never forget, we mean what we say," Obama told the firefighters.

He visited a Manhattan police station, where he signed the log book. "I am here basically to shake your hand and say how proud I am of all of you," Obama told them.

The city seemed to return the sentiment as crowds lined streets to cheer. It was Obama's first visit to Ground Zero since he became president.

Dorothy Francis, who worked in the neighborhood when the attack occurred, said she turned out "to do honor to the families. And it's a compliment on the bin Laden thing. … It's a relief to know that he's gone. It's a solemn day, really, just to know what was accomplished."

Chuck Alf, 41, visiting from Buffalo, was at the site for the first time since he went to dinner at Windows on the World, atop the north tower, in 2000. "There's a sense of pride there, to see your leader," he said. The mood on the street during the ceremony, even though no one could see the wreath laying, was solemn, he said. "For as many people as were on that street corner, it was amazingly quiet." He shared the sentiment, even though he's glad bin Laden has been killed. "I have no interest in hooting and hollering," he said. "There's a very solemn sense of some closure."

Obama spent an hour with about 60 relatives of the nearly 3,000 people who died in the attacks. They gathered at the 9/11 Memorial Preview Center, just outside the Trade Center site.

"It was like the bride at her wedding: He went to every table," said Jefferson Crowther, whose son Welles died after helping get injured Trade Center workers to safety. "He hugged the ladies, he shook the hands of the gentlemen."

Some family members had been upset not to have been included in the invitation-only event, so Mary and Frank Fetchet, founders of Voices of September 11 took letters to Obama that family members who were not invited posted on the group's Facebook page.

The message from Alexandra Luckett, who lost her brother in the collapse of the north tower, was heartfelt: "Please thank President Obama from everyone in Ted Luckett's family for finally bringing us some justice!" she wrote on Facebook. "I hope this brings a little peace to this country and that the war will soon come to an end. I love the Navy SEALs! Great job. Thank you from the bottom of my heart!"

Frank Fetchet, whose son Bradley was killed, said he had been among those who met with Obama at the beginning of his presidency in 2009.

"I felt this was kind of a bookend to that,"Fetchet said. With the death of bin Laden, "this phase of our journey from 9/11 is completed. ? There was a real pride in the room that this was done, and relief and thanks for the hard work of our military."

Jim Riches, a retired deputy chief with the city fire department and father of Jimmy Riches, a firefighter who was killed in the collapse of the north tower, was among those scheduled to meet with Obama. He recalled that at a meeting in 2009, Obama told the 9/11 families that he was determined to get bin Laden.

"He did a great job,and he deserves credit for it. He had the conviction to do it," Riches said Wednesday evening.

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Obama at Ground Zero: 'We will never forget'

During a solemn visit to New York City today, President Obama told a Manhattan firefighting crew that lost 15 members on 9/11 that the death of Osama bin Laden sends a strong message to both the nation and the world.

"When we say we will never forget, we mean what we say," Obama said during a fire station stop shortly before he laid a wreath at the site where the World Trade Center towers once stood.

After the wreath laying, Obama met with about 60 relatives of the nearly 3,000 people who died during the 2001 attacks that led to wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

The president also visited a Manhattan police station to speak with more of the first responders on Sept. 11. 2001, telling officers, "I am here basically to shake your hands and just to say how proud I am of all of you."

Last weekend's raid on bin Laden "sent a signal ... that we have never forgotten the extraordinary sacrifices that were made on Sept. 11," Obama said. "We did what we said we were going to do."

The president's first stop of the day came at the "Pride of Midtown Firehouse" at 48th Street and Eighth Avenue. Arriving to the applause of nearby crowd, Obama greeted each member of the company and then stopped to examine a plaque bearing the names of 15 firefighters who gave their lives on 9/11.

"This is a symbolic site of the extraordinary sacrifice that was made on that terrible day almost 10 years ago," Obama told company members.

The president then went in to lunch with crew now assigned to Engine Company 54, Ladder 4, Battalion 9. The president joked that he also visited the firehouse because "I heard the food was pretty good."

After the police station visit, Obama laid a wreath at Ground Zero. Our colleague Martha T. Moore reports:

Wreath laying site is between the two reflecting pools that mark the footprints of the towers, by a tree that was found growing on th site after the collapse and is called the Survivor Tree. It was taken away from the site, nursed back to health and returned to the site this year. Dignitaries included Rep. Peter King, R-N.Y.; Rep. Charles Rangel, D-N.Y.; and Govs. Chris Christie, R-N.J., and Andrew Cuomo, D-N.Y. New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg also attended.

Crowds with flags and cameras are strung along Church Street on the eastern edge of the 16-acre construction site.

Curtis Neal, 34, works as a super in building at 114 Liberty across from south edge of site. He thinks it's appropriate that Obama is here but worries that the Navy SEALS didn't get the right guy. "I wanted proof." Said he felt more certain after Obama spoke Sunday "but in the world we're living in anything is possible."

The White House closed Obama's meeting with 9/11 family members to the press. A statement said, "the families were selected in consultation with the National 9/11 Memorial staff and represent a cross section of family members from various 9/11 organizations who have been active advocating on behalf of 9/11 families."

In his remarks at the fire station, Obama also said that the commitment to making sure justice was done "is something that transcended politics, transcended party."

Spokesman Jay Carney said Obama wanted to visit the city in the wake of bin Laden's death "in order to recognize the terrible loss that New York suffered on 9/11 and to acknowledge the burden that families of the victims and the loved ones of the victims have been carrying with them since 9/11."

After a short plane ride from Washington, Obama choppered to a landing zone near Wall Street shortly after 11 a.m., with two limos and a pair of firetrucks waiting.

Also on hand to greet Obama: Former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani, who led the city after the World Trade Center attack.

During the visit to the firehouse, Obama lauded Giuliani for his "heroic acts" on 9/11.

THE PRESIDENT: Well, listen, the main reason I came here is because I heard the food is pretty good.

But to the Commissioner, to Mayor Giuliani -- who obviously performed heroic acts almost 10 years ago -- but most of all, to all of you, I wanted to just come up here to thank you.

This is a symbolic site of the extraordinary sacrifice that was made on that terrible day almost 10 years ago. Obviously we can't bring back your friends that were lost, and I know that each and every one of you not only grieve for them, but have also over the last 10 years dealt with their family, their children, trying to give them comfort, trying to give them support.

What happened on Sunday, because of the courage of our military and the outstanding work of our intelligence, sent a message around the world, but also sent a message here back home that when we say we will never forget, we mean what we say; that our commitment to making sure that justice is done is something that transcended politics, transcended party; it didn't matter which administration was in, it didn't matter who was in charge, we were going to make sure that the perpetrators of that horrible act -- that they received justice.

So it's some comfort, I hope, to all of you to know that when those guys took those extraordinary risks going into Pakistan, that they were doing it in part because of the sacrifices that were made in the States. They were doing it in the name of your brothers that were lost.

And finally, let me just say that, although 9/11 obviously was a high water mark of courage for the New York Fire Department and a symbol of the sacrifice, you guys are making sacrifices every single day. It doesn't get as much notoriety, it doesn't get as much attention, but every time you run into a burning building, every time that you are saving lives, you're making a difference. And that's part of what makes this city great and that's part of what makes this country great.

So I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart and on behalf of the American people for the sacrifices that you make every single day. And I just want to let you know that you're always going to have a President and an administration who's got your back the way you've got the backs of the people of New York over these last many years.

So God bless you. God bless the United States of America.

And with that, I'm going to try some of that food. All right? Appreciate you. Thank you.

USATODAY.com

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Opinions divided over Bush's no-show at ground zero

Ex-President George W. Bush, with President Barack Obama in January 2010, has preferred to stay out of the spotlight.President Obama is set to visit ground zero on ThursdayTrip comes days after he announced the capture and killing of Osama bin LadenColumnist Michelle Malkin questions why ex-President Bush won't accompany ObamaCNN analyst David Gergen: Bush believes "we only have one president at a time" CNN's "John King, USA" will broadcast from ground zero at 7 p.m. ET Thursday.

Washington (CNN) -- When President Barack Obama lays a wreath at the 9/11 Memorial on Thursday, he had hoped to be joined by former President George W. Bush. But in declining this invitation, Bush has left some observers puzzled, while others were supportive of his decision.

Conservative columnist Michelle Malkin says it's odd that Bush, who made it his mission to hunt down Osama bin Laden, will not appear alongside Obama. The trip to New York comes just days after the president announced bin Laden's death by U.S. forces in Pakistan.

"It would be an extraordinary -- dare I say 'unprecedented,' to borrow one of Obama's favorite words? -- act of political maturity, good faith, and transcendent unity against our common jihadi enemies," Malkin wrote on her blog. "Dubya needs to change his mind -- for America's sake."

Read Obama's speech to the nation on bin Laden's death

In a statement, David Sherzer, spokesman for the ex-president, said Bush "appreciated the invite, but has chosen in his post-presidency to remain largely out of the spotlight. He continues to celebrate with all Americans this important victory in the war on terror."

White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said Wednesday that Obama invited Bush because "he had hoped that if President Bush were able to come, that he would join the president in visiting the the World Trade Center site."

"We completely understand that he's not able to come, but that the invitation was made in that spirit," he added.

CNN senior political analyst David Gergen said there's a good reason why Bush decided to sit this one out.

"There are people who believe that President Obama should have given more credit to President Bush in that famous speech that he made a couple of nights ago. There is sourness around the president, but I don't think that's what motivates President Bush," Gergen said Wednesday.

"He and his family ... have an old-fashioned view, that we only have one president at a time," added Gergen, who has served in Democratic and Republican administrations. "I think this is quite genuine on the part of President Bush."

Still, Malkin insists that Bush's visit would show the world that both parties stand together on at least one issue.

"Side by side, the Democratic commander in chief and his GOP nemesis would join hands at the former site of the World Trade Center towers, pay heartfelt tribute to the thousands of victims of Osama bin Laden here at home and around the world, and pledge continued support for our military, intelligence, and homeland security personnel at home and around the world," she added.

Bush helped unite the nation in the days after the September 11 attacks, which killed more than 3,000 people. Bush's appearance alongside rescue workers on the smoky rubble of what once was the World Trade Center was one of the most memorable moments of that time.

LZ Granderson, a CNN.com contributor, writes that "in a perfect world, both parties would come together to celebrate what bin Laden's death means to the country's sense of closure."

However, he adds that Republicans use this opportunity to focus on wedge issues. "But the truth is some Republicans have already left the party and others didn't even bother showing up," he said.

Despite the criticism, former Bush officials argue that the ex-president deserves a lot of the credit for the capture and killing of al Qaeda's leader.

"It was also important that President Bush put in place counterterrorism strategies and policies, efforts that the military and intelligence have been making over the years," former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said on CNN's "American Morning" on Tuesday. "To work together better to achieve that kind of level of integration didn't happen yesterday. This is something that has been happening for quite a long time."

In another CNN interview, former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld praised Bush's controversial decision to imprison low-level al Qaeda officials.

"It is those people that know the habits and locations of the senior people. It is a good thing that the people were held and that there were interrogations," he said. "That information was patched together over a period of time."

Bin Laden's death has shown mixed results so far for Obama, at least when it comes to the polls.

A CNN/Opinion Research Corp. poll taken Monday showed that the death gave Obama no large bump in his approval ratings.

Obama's approval rating, now at 52%, is up 1 percentage point from a poll conducted Friday through Sunday, though it's up 4 points from Obama's 48% approval rating in early April. All interviews in the poll taken this weekend were conducted before the announcement of bin Laden's death.

A Washington Post-Pew Research Center poll taken Monday indicates that Americans are giving more credit to Obama than Bush for bin Laden's death. More than three out of four Americans said Obama deserves a great deal or "some" credit, while 51 percent said the same about Bush. The same poll found Obama's approval rating up 7 percentage points -- 56% to 49% -- from an earlier survey.

Also the latest New York Times-CBS News poll saw the president's approval rating at 57%, up from 46% last month.

So how does the Obama's standing in the polls compare with Bush's rise after the capture of Saddam Hussein?

Bush's approval rating jumped 8 percentage points, from 55% to 63%, in the days after his December 2003 announcement that Hussein had been captured.

CNN's Political Unit contributed to this report.

CNN

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GOP Medicare Plan Could Share Common Ground With 'Obamacare' Exchanges

Rep. Paul Ryan's budget proposal to overhaul Medicare already is being lambasted as an attack on seniors. 

But the basic details of the plan are not so far off from several other health care systems -- including the coverage provided to members of Congress, the Medicare Advantage program and the so-called health insurance exchanges established under the Democrats' federal health care system overhaul. 

Ryan, a Wisconsin Republican and chairman of the House Budget Committee, outlined the framework of his proposal on "Fox News Sunday." He said it would rely on the kind of "premium support" system outlined in an earlier proposal co-authored by him and former White House Budget Director Alice Rivlin -- meaning seniors would get a fixed subsidy from the government to help pay for premiums in the private health plan of their choosing. Ryan said Medicare would send the subsidies directly to the private plans, which would have to "compete against each other" for business. 

He compared the idea to Medicare Advantage, a Medicare offshoot which lets seniors put Medicare money toward private plans. But the framework also bares similarities to the exchanges in the federal health care overhaul. 

Both proposals presumably would put out a list of approved private health plans and subsidize the policies chosen by patients. 

Ryan, asked at an event last month about the common feature, said: "Exchange is not necessarily a dirty word." 

However, Ryan suggested the Republican idea of an exchange is much different from the Obama administration's idea. 

The differences may lie in implementation. Whereas the federal health care overhaul sets strict standards for the types of plans that would be allowed to compete for subsidized patients' business, the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities cautioned last month that the Ryan-Rivlin proposal "sets no specific benefit standards" for private plans. 

Conservatives, though, like the idea of a less-regulated exchange. 

John Goodman, president of the National Center for Policy Analysis, said he expects Ryan's plan to set some criteria. But he said that probably wouldn't be as strict as the federal exchanges, which he claimed would "virtually dictate" to insurance companies what they have to provide. 

"There's going to be choice in both worlds. ... That's similar," he said. "It's not radical. It's not even that new." 

But he praised Ryan's approach and suggested it be used as a model for the eventual exchanges under the health care overhaul. 

One key difference between the two exchanges is the way the subsidies are calculated. Under the Ryan-Rivlin proposal, the subsidy would be based on the average cost per Medicare patient in 2012 -- and then allowed to increase at the rate of GDP growth plus 1 percent. Under the health care overhaul, subsidies would be based on a calculation that factors in market prices and the income of the individual. 

There are other obvious differences. The health care overhaul uses Medicaid to cover very low-income individuals. And, of course, the Ryan-Rivlin plan deals with seniors, whereas the health care overhaul's exchanges are targeted at low- and middle-income individuals who generally are not covered by an employer. 

But as with the health care overhaul exchanges, Ryan suggested the GOP might be looking at a sliding scale for Medicare benefits. He told "Fox News Sunday" the proposal would give "more for the poor, more for people who get sick, and we don't give as much money to people who are wealthy." 

The Tax Policy Center, in an analysis put out last month, argued that the health care overhaul and the Ryan-Rivlin plan actually go hand-in-hand. The analysis said the federal overhaul lays the groundwork by instituting an individual mandate, setting up an exchange and establishing minimum standards for insurance plans. "Additional premium support for seniors would be the final piece of the puzzle," fellow Howard Gleckman wrote. "Seniors would be able to buy affordable private coverage through the same sort of exchanges as tens of millions of working people. ... The idea is not as radical as it sounds." 

He also compared the idea to Medicare Advantage and the plans offered to members of Congress, urging Democrats to stop defending the current "flawed" Medicare system and Republicans to let the federal health care overhaul go into effect -- so the two policies can complement each other. 

Though the exchange idea has been around, imposing such a change on Medicare would mark a stark departure from the current system, which provides government money straight to doctors and hospitals for senior care. 

The Ryan-Rivlin plan would call for seniors to pay more for smaller expenses but put a cap on what they could pay out-of-pocket. It's unclear whether the new GOP plan would have similar figures, but the Ryan-Rivlin proposal set a flat $600 deductible and capped total expenses at $6,000. 

Ryan stressed that the changes would not affect those 55 and older, but would keep the program solvent in the long-term. 

"Doing that saves Medicare," he said. 

Early criticism, though, has been fierce. 

Rep. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., claimed Ryan was giving a pass to "taxpayer giveaways" to the oil-and-gas industry and other corporate interests at the expense of seniors. 

"This is a huge change in Medicare. Not only does it cut the amount for Medicare but it ends the current guarantee that seniors have under Medicare to certain health benefits. And it essentially transfers all the risk of rising health care costs over to the senior," Van Hollen told Fox News. "What he's doing is privatizing Medicare." 

A Congressional Budget Office study last November determined that seniors would likely either face higher premiums or less extensive coverage under the Ryan-Rivlin plan. 

Goodman said it's true that the Ryan-Rivlin plan would eventually make seniors pay more out of their own pocket. But he argued that it also provides more "flexibility" to the private sector to control costs.  

Mike Needham, CEO of Heritage Action for America, said the current system simply won't last. 

"What we have now is a Medicare system that's going bankrupt," he said. "The most important thing is saving Medicare for future generations."

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Southwest to ground 79 planes

Passengers describe emergency landingSTORY HIGHLIGHTSA 3- to 4-foot hole is discovered in a plane's fuselageFAA: The captain made a rapid descent from 36,000 feet to 11,000 feetPassengers arrive in Sacramento, California, on a second plane (CNN) -- Southwest Airlines announced Saturday that it is grounding 79 planes for inspection following an incident in which one of its flights was forced to make an emergency landing after a 3- to 4-foot hole tore open in the fuselage of the plane.

The plane -- which had been traveling from Phoenix to Sacramento, California -- managed to land safely at a military base in Yuma, Arizona, on Friday. There authorities "discovered a hole in the top of the aircraft," the company said earlier.

Investigators are trying to determine what caused the "depressurization event" and have "decided to keep a subset of its Boeing 737 fleet out of the flying schedule to begin an aggressive inspection effort in cooperation with Boeing engineers," according to a company statement.

"The safety of our customers and employees is our primary concern, and we are grateful there were no serious injuries," said Mike Van de Ven, Southwest's executive vice president and chief operating officer.

The airline initially reported that 81 of its Boeing 737 aircraft would be grounded, but later decreased the number of planes to be inspected for what it called "aircraft skin fatigue." The inspections will take place at five locations over the course of the next several days, the airline said.

Meanwhile, passengers who were aboard the crippled the Boeing 737 said they had feared for their lives.

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