"Lest I myself be accused of spreading a myth, let’s start with a quick survey of some well-known progressives fond of endlessly repeating this canard. President Obama. Just last month, President Obama asserted that if Republicans “had some better ideas” on health care, he was “happy to hear them. But I haven’t heard any so far.” Democratic National Committee. In a press release less than two weeks ago, the DNC claims: “When it comes to the issues that matter to middle class Americans – from health care to immigration reform and energy policy – the GOP is simply out of ideas.” Paul Krugman. It probably will not surprise anyone to see someone with such a widespread reputation for truth-twisting in general–not to mention health policy—on this list. Just this month, Mr. Krugman has assured us that Republicans have an “obsession with denying insurance to 30 million Americans.” He’s convinced their objective is “to deny essential health care and financial security to millions of their fellow Americans.” In discussing Obamacare’s misguided modified community rating reforms, he sneers “conservatives balk at the notion of any kind of redistribution, even if it makes almost everyone better off. So they are unable to come up with an alternative” (emphasis added: as we’ll see, Republicans have been able and willing for years to offer ample alternatives to creating affordable coverage). And when Republicans such as Rep. Paul Ryan do come up with serious plans to reform an entitlement that the Medicare actuary, Treasury Department, Congressional Budget Office, the non-partisan Peter G. Peterson Foundation (and yours truly) all agree is unsustainable, Krugman’s retort about Republicans is that “They don’t want to make Medicare sustainable, they want to destroy it under the guise of saving it.” Matt Miller. The Washington Post’s progressive health policy champion has a nifty explanation for why Republicans have failed to come up with a plan that covers as many uninsured at such a low expense as Obamacare: “That’s because the GOP does not view the presence of 50 million uninsured in a wealthy nation as an issue that needs to be addressed.” Alan Grayson. Along the same lines, there was this classic rant by Rep. Alan Grayson (D-FL):... The take-home? Republicans have no health plan. Why? Because they don’t care about the uninsured. It’s fine with them if you get sick and die. Or if they do have a plan, it’s a lousy plan that won’t do much or will cost a boatload of money." More Progressive BS; it never seems to stop, perhaps because none of the chosen networks has ever called those who spew these lies!
Posted on: Sat, 28 Sep 2013 18:03:11 +0000
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