Obama called privatization an “ill-conceived” proposal that would “add trillions of dollars to our budget deficit while tying your benefits to the whims of Wall Street traders and the ups and downs of the stock market.”

“That agenda is wrong for seniors, it’s wrong for America, and I won’t let it happen. Not while I’m president,” Obama said.

He condemned Republicans in Congress for their proposals to repeal some Medicare benefits and reforms that were passed as a part of the health care legislation this year. Obama said that the measures are “adding at least a dozen years to the fiscal health of Medicare – the single longest extension in history.”