Rachel Maddow Kills the Romney/Ryan Medicare Lie Dead In its Tracks

Last updated on February 8th, 2013 at 01:05 pm

Rachel Maddow delivered a quick knock out punch to the Republican lie that Mitt Romney doesn’t support Paul Ryan’s Medicare voucher plan on Meet The Press.

Here’s the video:

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Transcript via Meet The Press:

RICH LOWRY: –Republicans should go on offense on Medicare, because the president, as part of Obamacare, passed $700 billion in cuts in Medicare. And Romney wants to repeal Obamacare, including those cuts.

RACHEL MADDOW: Wait, wait. Hold on. Hold on.

RICH LOWRY: So it’s–

RICH LOWRY:–so at the top– hold on. So at the top of a ticket Romney versus Obama, there’s only one of those guys who wants any cuts affecting current seniors.

RACHEL MADDOW: Wait, wait. There’s–

RICH LOWRY: That’s not Mitt Romney.

RACHEL MADDOW : -Romney versus Ryan then. The Ryan plan keeps the Obama cuts for Medicare.

RICH LOWRY: The Ryan plan–

RACHEL MADDOW: So which one is it?

RICH LOWRY: –does.

RACHEL MADDOW:The Romney or Ryan plan?

RICH LOWRY: The Ryan plan does mostly as a matter of just preserving the CDO baseline. But the top to the ticket is Mitt Romney. Mitt Romney wants to repeal those cuts. And the fact is, Rachel–

RACHEL MADDOW: Wait, that’s amazing.

RICH LOWRY: The fact is, Rachel–

RACHEL MADDOW: –Romney versus Ryan–

RICH LOWRY: If the Republicans–

RACHEL MADDOW: –on Medicare.

RICH LOWRY: –were proposing–

RACHEL MADDOW: That’s going to be awkward.

RICH LOWRY: –$700 billion. Had passed $700 billion in Medicare cuts, you’d be savaging–

RACHEL MADDOW: Wait–

RICH LOWRY: –that president for their brutality–

RACHEL MADDOW: So what–

RICH LOWRY: –to seniors.

RACHEL MADDOW: –but you’re saying–

RICH LOWRY: And that is–

RACHEL MADDOW: Wait–

RICH LOWRY: –Barack Obama.

RACHEL MADDOW: Is Romney running on the Ryan plan or not? Is Romney accepting–

RICH LOWRY: He’s running on–

RACHEL MADDOW: He said that (UNINTEL) he–

RICH LOWRY: –his own version of those ideas.

RACHEL MADDOW: That’s amazing. Paul Ryan accepted the exact same cuts.

See how easy that was? Rachel Maddow derailed Lowry in a matter of seconds on Medicare. As soon as she spotted the inconsistency in Lowry’s talking point, Maddow pounced and it was all over for Rich Lowry. As Maddow expertly revealed Republicans have to keep the conversation on Medicare superficial, because their whole talking point falls apart as soon as it is scrutinized in the slightest.

So Republicans are going to try to sell America on the idea that the Medicare privatization plan that Romney endorsed isn’t really Romney’s plan? That unpopular thing about the vouchers? That’s all Paul Ryan. Not us, no sir. Mitt Romney would never ever implement the plan that he endorsed and urged the Senate to pass. That is seriously going to be the Republican strategy on Paul Ryan’s Medicare voucher plan.

In the same clip Bill Bennett said that if the American people would only listen to the Republicans on Medicare, they would understand the problem and support the GOP. The problem that Republicans keep running into when they to sell their privatization scheme is that Medicare isn’t broke right now. Medicare will be solvent for another 12 years. The only reason Republicans keep screaming that Medicare is broke is because they want to gut and privatize the program as soon as possible.

Rachel Maddow showed America how quick and easy it is going to be for Democrats to use the Medicare issue against Romney and Ryan. It’s simple. Obama and every Democratic congressional candidate can argue that they are fighting to keep Medicare. The Republicans are trying to privatize it.

Republicans are never going to learn that it is political suicide for them to touch Social Security and Medicare. Among the elderly, the disapproval rate of the Romney endorsed Ryan plan for Medicare is 74%. Almost 3/4 of senior citizens disapproved of Ryan’s plan.

The Republican strategy across the Sunday talk shows has been to bash Barack Obama for Paul Ryan’s Medicare cuts, while claiming that Mitt Romney doesn’t really support his own running mate’s voucher plan for Medicare. Seriously, that is their whole argument.

What they are saying to voters is, “Trust us, Mitt Romney would never take away your Medicare. Trust us.” It is very difficult to trust a candidate who won’t release his tax returns, but it was very easy for Maddow to see through the Republican smokescreen on Medicare.

Rachel Maddow showed Republicans just a teeny tiny bit of what’s coming their way this fall. And if Sunday was any indication, Romney and the Republican Party have no clue what’s about to hit them.

Jason Easley

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