Wyden: GOP ‘knives are out’ for Social Security, Medicare
Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Ron Wyden, D-Ore., raised alarms Friday about comments by Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell that Wyden said call for harmful changes to Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security, and protections for pre-existing conditions.
“What Republicans are doing is the most brazen attempt to dupe the public that I’ve ever witnessed,” Wyden said in a news release. “First they passed a tax bill that gave a huge windfall to corporations and the wealthy, despite warnings from nonpartisan scorekeepers that it would explode the deficit. Then, before the ink was even dry, the knives came out for Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security.”
“Medicare and Social Security are earned benefits that offer a guarantee of a secure retirement,” the senator continued. “These bedrock programs are not the reason the deficit jumped this year – it’s Republicans’ blatant smash and grab of the American treasury in service of their special interest donors.
“Make no mistake, Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security and pre-existing condition protections are on the ballot this year, and Democrats are going to the mat the ensure they are safeguarded from cynical political games,” Wyden added.
Here’s the rest of Wyden’s news release:
After jamming a tax bill through the Senate that blew a nearly $2 trillion hole in the deficit, this week, Mitch McConnell had the audacity to blame Medicare and Social Security for the latest news about the skyrocketing deficit.
McConnell also supported Trump’s lawsuit that would rip away protections for pre-existing conditions from millions of Americans.
Mitch McConnell isn’t alone: Trump’s top economic adviser, Larry Kudlow, said the administration is going to propose cuts to Social Security and Medicare next year.
