Biden warns of `MAGA' Republicans' desire to cut spending
President Joe Biden on Tuesday said GOP lawmakers could put millions of people's health care at risk, honing his message ahead of the release of his budget plan next week as Republicans push for him to negotiate over spending levels.
The Democratic president spoke at a recreation center in Virginia Beach, Virginia. His remarks were part of a broader effort this week to contrast his administration's priorities with those of Republicans who have yet to spell out their budget cuts. Using past proposals, Biden said the GOP could try to slash Medicaid and Obamacare benefits, as well as Social Security and Medicare.
“What are they going to cut? That's the big question,” Biden said Tuesday. “For millions of Americans, health care hangs in the balance.”
Biden said that many Republicans are “really good.” But, he said, the GOP lawmakers who are part of the “Make America Great Again” movement started by former President Donald Trump have shown a willingness to cut funding for health care and allow the federal government to default on its financial obligations.
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., has called for the government to be on a path toward a balanced budget, but he has yet to offer an outline of which spending he would cut. The president has been using the absence of a GOP plan against them, choosing to highlight past proposals.
Biden is expected to build on that message in a meeting with House Democrats in Baltimore on Wednesday and before Senate Democrats on Thursday. The effort to highlight major differences with Republicans comes as Biden is expected to launch a reelection campaign this spring.
Rep. Jen Kiggans, the GOP congresswoman from Virginia Beach, said that Biden came to spread “partisan rumors,” since Republican lawmakers have already ruled out cuts to Medicare and Social Security.
“The president has shown that his talk of bipartisanship is simply political theatre,” said Kiggans, who has worked as a geriatric nurse. “Healthcare should never be used as a partisan publicity stunt.”
The president is due to release his budget plan on March 9, promising to trim the national debt by $2 trillion over 10 years. He's pledged to strengthen Medicare and Medicaid and defend Social Security from reductions in spending, saying that his goal is to bring down medical costs for families “so you have a little bit of breathing room.”
“That's what all Americans deserve: peace of mind,” Biden said. “That comes from knowing that an illness if it strikes or an accident occurs, you can get quality medical care and recover and heal.”
In the absence of a specific GOP plan, Biden administration officials are sketching worst-case scenarios for what Republicans might do, based on past statements, including what the White House warns could be deep cuts to Medicaid, which covers roughly 84 million people and has grown by 20 million since January 2020, just before the start of the coronavirus pandemic.