From Politico:
With five Republicans joining Democrats in opposition, the Senate easily rejected a House-passed budget plan Wednesday calling for deep cuts in domestic appropriations and major restructuring of Medicare, the government-backed healthcare program for the elderly.
The 57-40 roll call proved more for show than substance but still stung for GOP leaders, coming less than 24 hours after the same Medicare issue figured prominently in the upset of a Republican candidate in a special House election for upstate New York.
In a tell-tale sign of trouble ahead, there were significantly more defections among GOP moderates than in a similar partisan show vote in March testing support then for an earlier House Republican budget initiative focused on discretionary spending cuts. [Pols emphasis]
Colorado Republican Rep. Cory Gardner was defiant regarding the Ryan budget in an earlier Politico story today, but this afternoon’s Senate vote is telling in how moderates rejected the Ryan budget across-the-board. There’s Gardner’s strategic approach to Medicare and the “Ryan budget,” and then there’s the strategy being employed by Senate moderates — we can tell you which direction we’d be more comfortable with as an incumbent member of Congress (hint: it ain’t Gardner’s position).
Rand Paul, who doesn’t think the cuts go deep enough and four Republicans who see the writing on the wall.
This is pretty cute coming from a member of the Official Fear Mongering Party. The one that only yesterday was trying to scare seniors by telling them Obama wanted to cut their medicare benefits and the GOP would never let that happen. The one that wants us to fear crazed immigrants, all Muslims, a president with a funny name and dark complexion, socialism, etc.
Anyway, Ryan thinks he can turn things around by complaining about how Dems are trying to scare seniors by telling voters that the Ryan plan calls for an end to medicare. Never mind that it does. He calls this sinister Dem tactic “mediscare”, Get it?
He gamely puts it out there over and over. Who knows, maybe he got it from Luntz. He thinks it’s unfair that Dems are scaring seniors when he specifically promises not to screw today’s seniors. He swears he only wants to screw those who have been paying in all their lives and are now in their earlier 50s and younger. Those mean Dems aren’t playing fair.
In any case backpedaling Rs don’t seem to think it’s going to do the trick. Don’t think “mediscare” is ever going to get the general usage they managed for “Obamacare”. And that’s so yesterday’s news thanks to the storm they’ve stirred up with what must now be called simply the Republican Budget Plan, not just the Ryan Budget Plan, since outside of a handful in the Senate, they all voted for it. And I bet those mean Dems will use the unfair scare tactic of reminding voters of that every chance they get. Those fearmongers! Quoting R plans verbatim and pointing out how Rs voted.
He should give up the whole governing thing and get a job writing chyrons for Faux Nooz.
focus-group tested, Frank Luntz power word. All republicans are required to use it.
I think ” mediscare ” actually helps. With Paul Ryan at the helm you have a right to be scared.
and evyone knows what it refers to it’s harder to use “mediscare” in a coherent sentence because it refers to an action (verb). The Dems are mediscaring us? The Dems are using mediscare? Kind of awkward and maybe requires a little explanation. Maybe not from Luntz after all.
If there’s one thing Republican voters will never tolerate, it’s poor grammar (excessive melanin, gays, sensibe public health care, Muslim Presidents, and flag burning all follow closely behind.)
That being said, bwahahahaha! I wish the vote had happened next year, but I’m still a bit gleeful over here.
Teapers dream candidate when he ran and now he’s turned out to be kinda moderate. By Repub standards anyway.
to be a poll watching, do anything to get reelected, kind of guy. Whattayagonnado?
Funny how it was “sign” when he was elected, but anything moderate he does is… certainly not a reflection of the party!
Short term scare tactics and New England RINOs do not a panic make.
But then again, news that ArapaGOP is ignorant is the “dog bites man” variety all the way.
Rs complain about scare tactics. And maybe you should have done a little research on the district before making such a ridiculous statement about New England RINOs? Huh?
You’d almost think they had functioning amygdalae! It’s so cute when they pretend.
From the New York Times on the Hochul win and forcing the senators o go on record.
That was a simile.
So the Ryan plan to eliminate Medicare is to take away a program with under 5% administration costs and replace it with one with over 15% admin costs.
And, what do all those admins do?
To maximize profits in health insurance, you need to eliminate the expensive clients and keep the healthy ones. So the entire goal here is to reduce health care for the elderly.
You think it doesn’t work that way?
Have you ever had a “conversation” about denied service with your insurance company?
If you don’t insure the sick Medicare is a much more efficient program.
What do you expect out of a political party that insists government can’t do anything well and shouldn’t do anything other than fight lots of wars, stand guard over a woman’s private parts, promote Christianity, and pay off corporate fat cats?
Old people on modest fixed incomes love coupons. Although the kind they like is more like buy one meal get one free at Applebees. This is more like get a third off on a loaded BMW. Enjoy!