The GOP squirms over Paul Ryan's budget proposals

Rep. Paul Ryan is the ranking Republican member of the House Budget Committee.  He's was also commissioned to develop the Republican plan for health care and deficit reduction.  Titled "The Roadmap for America's Future", Ryan's plan no doubt shocked some Republicans when it was unveiled this week.

Well, it's sure not lacking in boldness.  Ryan's plan would privatize Social Security, exempt employer health-care benefits from taxation, and replace Medicare and Medicaid with a voucher system that even Ryan admits would not keep pace with the health care costs.  Sure enough, Ryan's budget plan reduces the deficit.  Sure enough, Ryan's budget screws the poor and seniors, placing the burden on them to figure out a way to pay out of pocket for uncontrolled health care costs.

I noted the other day, "In so many respects, Rep. Ryan's proposal is the pure embodiment of modern Republican orthodoxy: Privatization and vouchers and tax credits to replace federal services and reimbursement."

One might imagine the GOP, given the pressure Republicans have been under from Democrats to either put up or shut up, would welcome Rep. Ryan's ideologically pure and relatively detailed plan.  Uh, no.

"Paul Ryan, who's the ranking member on our budget committee, has done an awful lot of work in putting together his roadmap," (House Minority Leader Rep. John) Boehner said. "But it's his. And I know the Democrats are trying to say that it's the Republican leadership. But they know that's not the case." 

Well, duh!  What Republican in his right mind is going to advocate for screwing over seniors to balance the budget?  It's just not gonna happen, regardless of how much the Republicans may secretly admire the Ryan plan.

Republicans now seem to agree with Barack Obama that escalating health care costs are destabilizing and the key to long term deficit control.  I suppose that's a step in the right direction.  But why does this have to be sooooo hard?  The great majority of industrialized nations have already tackled and, at least partially, solved this problem.

Heaven forbid we might emulate France's, by all accounts, superior health care system.  I guess the Republicans would rather see seniors unable to afford care than stoop to that.

Comments

[Cleary]

Jay,

Thanks for adding me on facebook. I will enjoy reading your thoughts on issues.

You probably know I was in France last year. (I have some neat pictures posted. LOTS OF FUN!) After speaking with some of France's business leaders in healthcare, I was also convinced they have a superior healthcare structure. Alas, this is too “socialized” for us, although we seem to retroactively and indirectly let the tax dollar treat it so.

Sadly, I have yet to see any healthcare reform, either side of the fence, which will address the core of these snowballing and interdependent cost and performance problems. Fingers crossed!

Tell the family I say hi!

Cleary