April 25, 2011 09:05 PM UTC

Licking the "Third Rail" With Gardner, Tipton, Coffman and Lamborn

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• by: Colorado Pols

UPDATE: In case you weren’t completely sure about the extent to which Colorado’s freshman Rep. Cory Gardner had committed himself in support of the Paul Ryan 2012 budget plan, here’s his floor speech–with Gardner’s introduction from Rep. Ryan himself:

No denying it now, is there?

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As the Washington Post reports:

Anxiety is rising among some Republicans over the party’s embrace of a plan to overhaul Medicare, with GOP lawmakers already starting to face tough questions on the issue at town hall meetings back in their districts.

House leaders have scheduled a Tuesday conference call in which members are expected in part to discuss strategies for defending the vote they took this month on a budget that would transform the popular entitlement program as part of a plan to cut trillions in federal spending…

Some Republicans fear a repeat of 2005, when President George W. Bush tried to turn the political capital of his reelection into a push to privatize Social Security. Republicans abandoned the effort after Democrats vigorously attacked them, accusing the GOP of trying to cut benefits.

A Washington Post/ABC News poll published this week found that two-thirds of Americans want Medicare to remain as is. That includes 62 percent of independents and nearly eight in 10 people 65 and older – making for an uphill climb for House Republicans trying to reassure constituents.

Colorado Reps. Cory Gardner, Scott Tipton, Mike Coffman, and Doug Lamborn, who all voted in favor of the Paul Ryan “Path to Prosperity” budget plan…well, it’s our guess that they’ll be on this damage-control call. There’s less attention being paid in the media to this vote locally than in some other parts of the country, but our Colorado representatives–especially our two freshman–should not count on that to remain the case forever.

Because as the Los Angeles Times reports, and we warned, it’s not going well out there:

Americans show little willingness to hand more Medicare services over to the private sector, and majorities endorse raising taxes on the wealthiest Americans, as Obama advocates. The GOP plan would send tax rates in the other direction, reducing the rate for the highest-paid Americans from 35% to 25%.

That provision proved problematic for some GOP lawmakers meeting voters back home. At a town hall in Milton, Wis., opponents booed and heckled Ryan as he explained his rationale for lowering taxes for the wealthy…

Rep. Scott Tipton became the early focal point of criticism over the “Ryan Plan,” after he became the first Colorado representative to embrace it. He still stands out as an early backer of the plan to privatize Medicare and further cut taxes for the rich (see ominous polling above), but all four Colorado GOP congressman are now 100%, inextricably saddled with this proposal.

To which we can only say, better hope redistricting goes very, very well for them.