After all the changes and delays to Obamacare, the Galen Institute lists 35 major ones, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius on Tuesday pointed the finger at GOP governors for “playing with people’s lives,” by rejecting Medicaid in their states under Obamacare.
Sebelius’s evasion of responsibility and angry accusations aimed at Republican governors is part of a Democratic designed strategy to take the offense on Obamacare and deflect criticism of the health care law’s epic failure. On Wednesday, a Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) memo, obtained by The Hill, to all Democrat candidates running in 2014 asserted that “the political landscape around the Affordable Care Act has shifted in Democrats’ favor.”
The memo further states that, “Americans are rejecting Republicans’ repeal agenda both nationally and in swing districts, where voters want to see the Affordable Care Act fixed and improved, not repealed.” Moreover, Democrats are targeting Republicans for rebuffing Medicaid expansion. Democrat strategists are hoping that this will be a vulnerable area for Democrats to attack. Secretary Sebelius disparaged Texas Gov. Rick Perry, who may be a GOP candidate for President in 2016. She implied that it was outrageous that Texas had not accepted federal dollars and expanded the Medicaid program in order to insure more people.
Democrats are charging that the repeal of Obamacare will result in the loss of entitlements and are launching aggressive online campaigns in 57 congressional districts. “Time and again, national Republicans have predicted they will gain a significant number of seats in 2014 because of their position on the Affordable Care Act,” the DCCC memo states. “As Democrats work to fix and improve the law, House Republicans will find their repeal position is anathema to 2014 voters, who won’t choose representatives who will take us back to a broken health care system.”
A Democrat PAC, House Majority, is busy creating ads for two representatives that will be running in November, Ann Kirkpatrick (D-AZ) and Joe Garcia (D-FL). The ads will admit mistakes for the healthcare.gov website, but will hit hard on why America needed the law in the first place.
On the other hand, Republicans campaign ads have consistently hit those who voted for the law or have not shown a sufficient level of opposition to it.
“I don’t understand the [Democratic] strategy of wanting to fight on terrain that benefits Republicans,” republican political strategist Matt Mackowiak believes. “It’s really throwing good money out after bad… the opportunity to show a good story about Obamacare has passed.”
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