Hillary Clinton said Wednesday that congressional Democrats running for re-election in 2014 can present a “very stark choice” between themselves and the GOP on Obamacare, urging them to talk up the benefits of the law.
“If I were a Democrat running for reelection in 2014, I would be posing a very stark choice to the voters of my district, or my state: If you want us to go back to the time when your sister with diabetes, or your husband with his heart condition, couldn’t get insurance at an affordable rate, then don’t vote for me, because I think it’s great that your sister and your husband now have insurance,” she said on PBS NewsHour.
Clinton pointed to the growing evidence that the law is reducing the number of uninsured as “good news” that Democrats can use. Obamacare surpassed expectations when it hit 8 million sign-ups this spring, and pubic polling continues to find a notable drop in the uninsured ranks since it took full effect.
“There’s a lot of good news in what’s been done,” she said. “There are so many examples that people can point to.”
She also said that Democrats should be open to ideas about fixing the law, but contrast themselves with Republican candidates who run on repeal.
“I think people should say, look, we’re going to learn more about how it’s working,” she said, “if there are adjustments that need to be made as we go forward, wouldn’t you rather have somebody who wants to keep the good and fix what’s not working, than somebody who wants to undermine it and maybe throw it out?”
