There was a lot of discussion in the media this week about using our soldiers as a “political football.” After we learned that a White House draft guidance targeted the pay of our service men and women as a way to take revenge on Republicans’ targeting DC Planned Parenthoods, Democrats felt the wrath of the country — and support for Obama’s Libyan offensive sank further.
Prior to the discussion about our military however, was the discussion of the billion-dollar windfall profit AARP is set to receive, a gift from the Democrats. They cared so much about the elderly during the campaign season that they decided to craft legislation that would force millions of elderly Americans off Medicare Advantage and on to MediGap (which one can purchase as a member of AARP). Paul Begala last week argued on CNN that Democrats had to cut the federal subsidy for Medicare Advantage, you know, to cut the spending, while also ironically supporting the health control law, a subsidy that trumps any figure Medicare Advantage could have ever accrued. How convenient, too, that Democrats found a way to do this and also boost the member rolls and bottom line of AARP, one of the biggest supporters of their national health care subsidy.
While Nancy Pelosi said that Republicans were going to steal old people’s meals, while Louise Slaughter said that Republicans were going to “kill women,” Democrats themselves were quietly crafting cuts that would further affect the poor and elderly:
Barack Obama will this week propose cuts in health care provision for the elderly and the poor as he seeks to reach agreement with Republicans on bringing America’s record levels of debt under control.
Aides said that in a major speech on Wednesday the US president will lay out plans that will include reform of Medicare and Medicaid, the major subsidised health care schemes that are among the main causes of the country’s $14.25 trillion ( 8.7 trillion) national debt.
Mr Obama’s forthcoming speech is recognition that he needs to gain the initiative on spending, amid deep public concern about the viability of the US economy. Having launched his 2012 re-election campaign, he needs to produce a plan that will convince voters that deficits will be brought under control.
The Republicans have already taken the lead on the issue, with Representative Paul Ryan, the chairman of the House budget committee, releasing a 2012 budget plan that included major cuts to Medicare, which provides for the retired, and Medicaid, which offers help for the poor.
What’s this? Did the era of hope and change turn a shade of red? Is Barack Obama making a Republican move?
I won’t criticize his moves on this, so long as he follows up with ending additional subsidies. It’s a bold step for a Democrat to take. I will, however, completely mock all the Democrats who went on the record against such a move, who called it “evil,” who pointed fingers and fear-mongered, Democrats who now find themselves in reality and see what has to be done in order to prevent the economy from collapsing. There’s that famous saying: “A Democrat is a Republican who hasn’t been mugged yet.” I think some Democrats are watching a mugging of their approval ratings in the polls by their bad economic performance.
But before you get excited, before anyone could fully make the remark that going after entitlement is the right step for congress to take, Obama’s operative/advisor David Plouffe stomped all over the kittens and sunshine parade with this gem:
Mr Obama’s ideas will be nothing like as radical, said Mr Plouffe, and he is likely to call for the restoration of tax rises for the rich and further cuts in defence expenditure.
Instead of government cutting more spending of your money, it wants to take more of your money. Government has a spending problem. If it were to only spend what it’s allowed to spend as per its enumerated powers, we wouldn’t have a deficit problem. But government, especially this administration, which added a trillion dollars to the deficit last year alone, can’t stop its addiction.
Those who don’t understand economics flood the airwaves, op/ed pages, and talk show circuits with rehashed Marxist, frosh-rationing garbage about the wealthy and how dare they someone take America up on her offer to achieve the dream. They spit out inaccuracies about the “rich paying their fair share” except the wealthy pay most of the share.
More stats:
National Taxpayers Union – Who Pays Income Taxes?
The Tax Foundation – New Data: Top 1% Pay Greater Dollar Amount
[Figures from IRS.gov statistics]
You could argue that Americans who work hard and achieve the American Dream are another political football.
What I’ll be watching in the coming weeks is how the media will react to this move by the Obama administration. Will Louise Slaughter accuse the President of killing old people? Will Nancy Pelosi charge him with robbing the elderly of their meals?
Not likely. But in a way, that’s OK. I have no problem with Democrats wanting to approach entitlement spending and taking Republican ideas to stave off an economic collapse. I want them to come back from the socialist brink so badly that I don’t even care if they believe that they came up with the idea themselves.
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