The way Rep. Nan Hayworth, R-Mount Kisco, reads the Hippocratic Oath, repealing and de-funding the health care reform law — the measure aimed at providing health care coverage to some 35 million Americans who are without insurance — is A-OK. Her promise to undo “Obamacare” has made her the darling of groups like American Action Network, which is taking out half-page newspaper ads across the country, including in The Journal News, singing the praises of Dr. Hayworth for standing up against Democratic-endorsed health care fixes, most recently with respect to Medicare.
President Obama’s initiatives, according to American Action Network, would be a scourge upon the elderly, one that would sharply increase costs. The ad uses words like “radically change,” “drastic change,” “price controls” and “devastating,” which we must assume would scare the pants off of a senior, at least one who didn’t know any better.
According to FactCheck.org, American Action Network was formed in 2010 by Norm Coleman, a former Republican senator from Minnesota, and Rob Collins, a former chief of staff to House Minority Whip Eric Cantor. “It describes itself as an ‘action tank.’ In practice it spends to attack Democratic candidates and support Republicans,” according to FactCheck. Board members include Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, and Ed Gillespie, a former chairman of the Republican National Committee.
The group “focused most of its resources in 2010 targeting Democratic candidates for defeat, particularly in the battleground states of Pennsylvania ($2.5 million) and Virginia ($2.3 million).” It spent upward of $25 million pushing its agenda. For the 2012 elections, the group is expected to spend “in the high tens of millions,” according to the National Journal. From FactCheck: “As we wrote in August, American Action Network spent close to $1 million on misleading newspaper ads and mailers attacking President Obama and Democrats on Medicare in 22 districts represented by Republicans in 14 states.”
FactCheck calls the ad campaign “More Mediscare” — conduct it says both Republicans and Democrats are guilty of; an August post cuts through the fright and aims to set matters straight, just in time for Halloween.
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So I guess cutting 500 billion out of medicare isn’t a radical change to fund an additional entitlement. Right now some of us have to worry that our companies won’t drop us to save on healthcare- or worse get rid of us. New York has 5 million people on medicare; doctors are refusing to accept these patients because they can’t cover their costs. Wait until this balloons. And why do you have to attack Hayworth personally- she certainly is a better doctor than you are a journalist. In fact, you should read a biography on Frank Gannett on the acela back to Gannett headquarters in Washington D.C