Robert Reich explains the calculus behind the president's targeting of corporate tax havens:
How does it help for him to take on corporate tax havens? Because the President needs as many bargaining chips with the rest of corporate America as possible. The proposed crackdown on foreign tax avoidance is one such chip. He might be willing to take it off the table if big corporations lend him active support on health insurance.
And...
By some measures, $700 billion or more in U.S. corporate earnings is now sitting in overseas accounts. A portion of that might be made available to help pay for universal health insurance.
If accurate, I never thought I'd ever see the day when an American president would actively go after corporate tax loopholes in order to both achieve and finance national health insurance.