THANKS, MA
Maternal aid as Ryan defends Medicare plan to seniors
PAUL RYAN brought a secret weapon — his mother — with him Saturday as he defended his lightning-rod Medicare plan at the nation’s largest senior citizens community.
Ryan made his case in the crucial battleground state of Florida, where many pundits feel his addition to the Republican ticket may hurt Mitt Romney’s chances of carrying the Sunshine State.
But Ryan — in the Republican-leaning crowd at The Villages — trotted out his mother as the best reason for adopting his plan, which would dramatically alter Medicare.
“Say hi to my mom, Betty,” Ryan said to thousands of supporters.
“Medicare was there for our family, for my grandma when we needed it, and Medicare is there for my mom when she needs it now,” the Wisconsin congressman said. “It’s not just a program; it’s not just a bunch of numbers; it’s what my mom relies on.”
The transformation of Medicare is the most controversial component of Ryan’s spending-slashing budget plan.
It would replace the current system with vouchers, which critics believe will drive up the cost of health h care — and leave some seniors niors without the coverage they hey need.
Realizing they hey could be vulnerable to Democratic attacks, Republicans blicans have instead tried to strike first on the hot-button ton issue.
Betty Ryan, an, 78, who spends winters rs in Florida, smiled broadly y as her son blamed the new federal health care law for jeopardizing the future of Medicare.
“Medicare should not be used as a piggy bank for Obamacare,” said Paul Ryan, sounding a new GOP talking point that claims the President’s signature legislative accomplishment was in part funded by $716 billion borrowed from Medicare.
The Democrats have pushed back on that accusation, saying that the savings produced by Obamacare will not only repay Medicare but fund it well into the future.
Ryan heard only applause from the seniors who gathered in the central Florida morning sun. The Villages, which is home to more than 60,000 seniors, is owned by Gary Morse, a major Romney donor.
President Obama, who appeared at a pair of rallies in the swing state of New Hampshire, slammed the Republican ticket’s fiscal proposals.
“The centerpiece of my opponent’s entire economic plan is a new $5 trillion tax cut, a lot of it going to the wealthiest Americans,” Obama said.
“And his new running mate, Congressman Ryan,” Obama said, “put forward a plan that would let Gov. Romney pay less than 1% in taxes each year.”
Romney said last week that he paid at least 13% in taxes every year.