Obama: Medicare ‘Getting Better All The Time’ Because Of Health Care Reform
In this weekend’s YouTube address, President Obama touted a government report showing an increase in the financial solvency of Medicare, due to the recent health care reform law — a clear effort to sell the law to older voters.
“According to this report, the steps we took this year to reform the health care system have put Medicare on a sounder financial footing. Reform has actually added at least a dozen years to the solvency of Medicare – the single longest extension in history – while helping to preserve Medicare for generations to come,” said Obama. “We’ve made Medicare more solvent by going after waste, fraud, and abuse – not by changing seniors’ guaranteed benefits. In fact, seniors are starting to see that because of health reform, their benefits are getting better all the time.”
Roskam: Dem Spending Is Like Teenagers Trashing A House
In this weekend’s Republican address, Rep. Peter Roskam (R-IL) employed a colorful metaphor in order to blast the Democrats on spending:
“Under Democratic Leaders in Congress spending has gotten completely out of control. It reminds me of when Mom and Dad go away for the weekend. The teenagers say, ‘leave us home alone, we’re responsible, what can go wrong?’ Except Mom and Dad come home a day early only to find the house is trashed, the police are parked outside and everything is a mess. At this outrageous rate of spending, the Obama Administration and Congress are on track to triple the national debt over the next 10 years.
Romer: White House Departure Was Long Planned
White House economic adviser Christina Romer told the Associated Press that her resignation had been long planned because of family reasons, so that her 14-year old son could spend his high school years in one place in California. She also gave a positive description of any disagreements within the economic team. “Everybody knows we’re all strong personalities,” said Romer. “We don’t hesitate to have a very aggressive back and forth. But I think one of the things that we have done is absolutely find our groove. We’re a wonderful team.”
RNC Passes Primary Calendar Reform
The Republican National Committee has officially passed changes to their presidential primary calendar for 2012. The four early states of Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada will hold their contests in February, not January, and the contests in March will award delegates based on proportional representation. This is intended to have the effect of lengthening the process, in order to give more candidates a change to win instead of a single early frontrunner.
Kagan To Be Sworn In Today
Elena Kagan will be officially sworn in today as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, following her confirmation by the Senate this past Thursday. Kagan will be sworn in by Chief Justice John Roberts, but will not formally be seated and begin her work until October 1, with the court’s fall session.
Rangel Loses Big Donors Amid Ethics Scandal
The New York Daily News reports: “Rep. Charles Rangel has another bitter pill to swallow – some once-loyal big donors, including drug giant Pfizer, are refusing to cough up cash for his birthday bash next week. Barbara Kamen, a past regular at the lavish affair, said the party’s over for her. ‘We just don’t think he is such a terrific guy any more,’ said Kamen, who, together with her husband and former MetLife CEO Harry Kamen, has given $11,600 to Rangel over the years.”
Democrats Invoke Bush To Get Support From Voters For Midterm Elections
The Washington Post reports on Democratic efforts to continue tying Republicans to former President George W. Bush: “In interviews, mailings and television ads, Democratic candidates are once again hauling out the specter of the former president to use as a foil. Nearly two years after he left office and virtually disappeared from public view, Bush — his image, his policies, his legacy — are being dragged back into the public arena…’God bless America that he’s back in the conversation,’ a senior Democratic official on Capitol Hill said. ‘It’s a blessing from the heavens. If this becomes a referendum on George Bush, we are in a much better spot than anyone could imagine.'”
