On Wednesday, I posted Republicans Kill the CBO. Yesterday, Republicans put it into practice by ignoring the CBO estimate on the cost of repealing health care reform. In the process, they violate their own CUTGO rule. In addition, Republicans are proving that rules, even their own rules, are something for someone else to follow, but not applicable to them.
The nonpartisan budget scorekeepers in Congress said on Thursday that the Republican plan to repeal President Obama’s health care law would add $230 billion to federal budget deficits over the next decade, intensifying the first legislative fight of the new session and highlighting the challenge Republicans face in pursuing their agenda.
The new House speaker, John A. Boehner, flatly rejected the report, saying it was based largely on chicanery by Democrats.
Mr. Boehner’s dismissal of the report by the Congressional Budget Office, at his first formal news conference as speaker, was the latest salvo in the battle over the health care law. White House officials on Thursday said they were stepping up efforts to defend the law, with a new rapid-response operation to rebut Republican claims and to deploy supporters to talk about the benefits of the law.
But Mr. Boehner’s remarks held wider implications, effectively putting him on a war footing with the independent analysts whose calculations generally guide discussions about the projected cost or savings of any legislation.
“I do not believe that repealing the job-killing health care law will increase the deficit,” he said.
“C.B.O. is entitled to their opinion,” he said, but he said Democrats had manipulated the rules established for determining the cost of a program under the 1974 Budget Act.
“C.B.O. can only provide a score based on the assumptions that are given to them,” Mr. Boehner said. “And if you go back and look at the health care bill and the assumptions that were given to them, you see all of the double-counting that went on.”
But the analysis released by the budget office on Thursday was based on the health care repeal bill that House Republicans introduced on Wednesday. And it highlighted the difficult position that Republicans are in as they try to address what they insist are the top two priorities of voters who elected them in November: cutting the deficit and undoing the health care law.
According to the budget office, those goals are contradictory.
The budget office estimated that the health care law, including education provisions, would reduce deficits over 10 years by $143 billion. Tax increases and cuts in projected Medicare spending would more than offset the cost of extending health insurance to millions of Americans. The budget office projected that the law would result in even bigger savings beyond 2019… [emphasis added]
Inserted from <NY Times>
It’s clear to see that Boehner’s argument is a lie. Simply put, when facts stand in the way of screwing America on behalf of millionaires, billionaires and criminal corporations, the Republican position is “Damn the facts, Full speed backward!”
For the rest of the Republican hypocrisy that is coming to light, I turn to Rachel Maddow’s commentary and her interview with Rep. Peter Welch.
Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy
I’m so glad she’s back!
The next two years will require intense vigilance on our part to publicize the ongoing scandal of Republican governance.
11 Responses to “Who Cares What the CBO Says?”
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Tom, to paraphrase the old wild west saying, the only good Republican is a dead Republican. It is pretty much recognized that the House vote to repeal is a sop to the Tea Party and will fail, but we really should put the screws to these bastards and force everyone who votes to repeal health care reform to give up their own government provided health care. Hopefully these turkeys will not be able to do too much damage in the next two years, gridlock would be a small price to pay for their folly, but it will be interesting to see just how long it takes for buyers remorse to set in with those who elected them.
Charles, as long as they die of natural causes. 😉 Of course it will fail. But their attempt is a teachable moment for Amnerica.
TC,
I’m sorry to be the contrary one here, but it really frustrates me to see Democrats lining up to fight for a Republican plan which cements health care into the private sector and massively bails out that corrupt industry. We used to want affordable health care, now we want what the Republicans want – and we’re fighting for them to get it. We’re fighting THEIR battle. Then because it sucks, the Republicans can sit back and point the finger at us – and they’ll be RIGHT.
Look at all the $ Boehner et al take from that industry-as much as the Democrats do. They’re not gonna kill it.And if they do, good. Obamacare makes a bad situation worse.
Oso, what this country needs is a single payer system, such as Medicare for all. But it took from Teddy Roosevelt to Barack Obama to get even the inadequate reform we now have. As flaws show up in practice, correcting them can move us toward what we want. If Republicans can repeal it, which the can’t, we’re back to where we were when TR started this fight. Anyway, would you want to be the one to tell a mother that it’s ok for an insurance company to drop her child who will die of cancer if they do?
Oso is making some good points. Barack Bush did put in some things which help a small number of people. But, the biggest impacts of the wealthcare bill for the HMOs, health insurers, and Big Pharma will be catastrophic. People will be fined for not being able to afford health insurance, premiums will skyrocket, the poor among the elderly will lose a lot of care because of cuts to Medicare “Advantage,” and access to abortion will be further restricted.
I would love to see a partial repeal where the popular parts stay and the nasty parts go.
Overall, Obama’s wealthcare plan is a step backward. It’s important to see the big picture. The Corpocrats are portraying it as a reform, which is deliberately deceptive. It was written by a former lobbyist for the HMOs.
TC,
I understand your points, but I must agree with Libhom. I do hear some good anecdotal things about Obamacare, but the corporate payoffs far outweigh the small bone they threw people. As far as I know,it’s already illegal for insurance companies to drop sick people. What we need is funding to the states so they have the resources to fight this. An example would be here in California, the state will not prosecute the large companies for exactly that violation – large companies like Blue Cross have deep pockets. The state insurance board only goes after the small fry.
Guys, if partial repeal were on the table, I would agree with you, but that is not an option. It is only illegal for insurance companies to drop sick people to duck paying for their care, because the bill made it illegal.
They broke their own rules on the first day – I’m shocked, SHOCKED, I tell ya. 🙄 This is another Contract on America – and if they think they’re gonna repeal HCR, they’re nuts. It will die in the Senate, because they can’t get anything done. 😛
Lisa, perhaps it was a printer’s error and it’s really the Contract ON America.
I guess 2014 is to long to wait to see what this bill does when fully implemented. But remember they only allowed four minutes of debate for the two numbnuts who swore their oath of office by television proxy and no debate or amendment whatsoever on the job killing health care act they will vote on next week.
This is simple pandering to the Teapeeple and business for financial contributions. Nothing more nothing less. Who by the by is paying for Huckabee’s platform ad against HCR and his “petition” drive.
As for the CBO shit, don’t like what they say move the line, that is pretty much proven standard Boehner/MCConnel tactic.
BTW, one effect of repealing the “job killing” bill would be to lose about 32,000 jobs.