President Obama broke out the whooping stick today, and ripped Republicans for their intentional campaign to mislead people about Obamcare.
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Many Members of Congress, in both parties, are working hard to inform their constituents about these benefits, protections, and affordable plans. But there’s also a group of Republicans in Congress working hard to confuse people, and making empty promises that they’ll either shut down the health care law, or, if they don’t get their way, they’ll shut down the government.
Think about that. They’re actually having a debate between hurting Americans who will no longer be denied affordable care just because they’ve been sick – and harming the economy and millions of Americans in the process. And many Republicans are more concerned with how badly this debate will hurt them politically than they are with how badly it’ll hurt the country.
A lot of Republicans seem to believe that if they can gum up the works and make this law fail, they’ll somehow be sticking it to me. But they’d just be sticking it to you.
Some even say that if you call their office with questions about the law, they’ll refuse to help. Call me old-fashioned – but that’s lousy constituent service. And it’s not what you deserve.
Your health insurance isn’t something to play politics with. Our economy isn’t something to play politics with. This isn’t a game. This is about the economic security of millions of families.
See, in the states where governors and legislatures and insurers are working together to implement this law properly – states like California, New York, Colorado and Maryland – competition and consumer choice are actually making insurance affordable.
So I’m going to keep doing everything in my power to make sure this law works as it’s supposed to. Because in the United States of America, health insurance isn’t a privilege – it is your right. And we’re going to keep it that way.
The Republican problem on the ACA is the same one that they have always had. They did a great job of demonizing the term “Obamacare,” but a lousy job of making people dislike what Obamacare (the ACA) actually does. People like the main parts of the healthcare reform law, and they really like the savings that they are seeing in states that have implemented their own health insurance exchanges.
Earlier this week, Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) admitted that it will be virtually impossible to defund Obamacare. He was right, but what Republicans won’t admit is that the biggest hurdle they have to overcome isn’t Democratic control of the Senate and White House, but the fact that people like what the law does.
Usually, presidential weekly radio addresses follow a predictable routine. The president discusses an important part of his agenda, and features themes that he has highlighted during the week. The president doesn’t normally use this forum to take on his opposition in such a direct way. It’s clear that this isn’t 2010, and President Obama is coming after Republicans hard for their misinformation.
Even though, their plot to turn the clock back to 2010 with Obamacare lies has completely failed, President Obama was right. People’s healthcare isn’t a game, and Republicans need to be called out for misleading people and encouraging them to go without health insurance.
Obama is on the offensive. The ACA is the law of the land, and if Republicans run against Obamacare in 2014, they don’t stand a chance.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
