“The Republican Agenda is the Same as it Ever Was, and the American People are Sick and Tired of It,” says Brad Woodhouse
Washington, DC – In response to Senator Mitch McConnell joining the pack of Republicans pledging to further slash Medicaid and Medicare to pay for deficit busting tax cuts for big corporations and the super rich. Brad Woodhouse, executive director of Protect Our Care, issued the following statement in response:
“The Republican agenda is the same as it ever was: explode the deficit by trillions of dollars giving tax breaks to big corporations and the wealthy and then slash Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security which ordinary Americans rely on. Mitch McConnell is a serial liar and only a fool would have believed him when he said that the tax scam they passed would pay for itself and only a fool would believe him or Republicans now when they say they care about getting the deficit they created under control. No, like always they have exploded the deficit by showering tax breaks on their friends and donors with the express purpose of turning around and slashing these programs which they have been out to dismantle for years. And we will all be damn fools if we let them get away with it.”
HERE ARE SOME OF THE OTHER REPUBLICANS PLEDGING TO SLASH HEALTH CARE TO PAY FOR THEIR TAX CUTS FOR THE WEALTHY:
- Last month, Larry Kudlow, Director of the National Economic Council, confirmed that he has his sights on cutting Medicare. Asked when programs like Social Security and Medicare will be looked at for reforms, Kudlow replied, “Everyone will look at that — probably next year.”
- Paul Ryan on Medicare: “It’s the biggest entitlement we’ve got to reform.” Paul Ryan, December 6, 2017: “We’re going to have to get back next year at entitlement reform, which is how you tackle the debt and the deficit…Frankly, it’s the health care entitlements that are the big drivers of our debt, so we spend more time on the health care entitlements…In- think the president is understanding that choice and competition works everywhere in health care, especially in Medicare…This has been my big thing for many, many years. I think it’s the biggest entitlement we’ve got to reform.”
- President Trump and Congressional Republicans are targeting Medicare and Medicaid to pay for tax cuts for the wealthiest. Last December, President Trump signed a $1.5 trillion tax bill that disproportionately benefits the wealthy. How do Republicans plan on paying for it? Speaker Ryan’s answer is clear: “Frankly, it’s the health care entitlements that are the big drivers of our debt.” In an attempt to pay for these tax cuts, in April, House Republicans passed a budget amendment that would slash Medicare funding by $537 billion over the next decade.
- Congressional Republicans proposed these cuts after passing a budget resolution last year that cut Medicare by $473 billion. The 2018 budget resolution passed by Republicans in December 2017 cut Medicare by $473 billion.
- Congressional Republicans Voted to Slash An Additional $1.3 Trillion From Medicaid and other Health Care Programs. The 2018 budget resolution passed by Republicans in December 2017 cut non-Medicare health programs, most notably Medicaid, by $1.3 trillion, a 20 percent cut over the course of 10 years, increasing to a 29.3 percent cut by 2027.