“The White House left open the possibility Sunday that President Obama could tax employer-provided health insurance to pay for his $1 trillion universal healthcare plan, a violation of the president’s campaign pledge to not raise taxes on middle-class families. White House adviser David Axelrod said the administration wouldn’t rule out taxing some employees’ benefits to fund a healthcare agenda that has yet to take final form. The move would be a compromise with fellow Democrats, who are pushing the proposal as a way to pay for the massive undertaking without ballooning the federal deficit. ‘There are a number of formulations and we’ll wait and see. The important thing at this point is to keep the process moving, to keep people at the table, to the keep the discussions going,’ Axelrod said. ‘We’ve gotten a long way down the road and we want to finish that journey.’” (06/28/09)