RyanCare Is Very Unpopular

Filed in National by on April 20, 2011

In the open thread we were already discussing how Paul Ryan (so bold and courageous!) was booed at his own Town Hall event when he defended tax cuts for the rich at the expense of Medicare. Watch here:

Ryan argued against “redistribut[ing]” in this manner. After the constituent noted that “there’s nothing wrong with taxing the top because it does not trickle down,” Ryan argued that “we do tax the top.” This response earned a chorus of boos from constituents:

CONSTITUENT: The middle class is disappearing right now. During this time of prosperity, the top 1 percent was taking about 10 percent of the total annual income, but yet today we are fighting to not let the tax breaks for the wealthy expire? And we’re fighting to not raise the Social Security cap from $87,000? I think we’re wrong.

RYAN: A couple things. I don’t disagree with the premise of what you’re saying. The question is what’s the best way to do this. Is it to redistribute… (Crosstalk)

CONSTITUENT: You have to lower spending. But it’s a matter of there’s nothing wrong with taxing the top because it does not trickle down.

RYAN: We do tax the top. (Audience boos). Let’s remember, most of our jobs come from successful small businesses. Two-thirds of our jobs do. You got to remember, businesses pay taxes individually. So when you raise their tax rates to 44.8 percent, which is what the president is proposing, I would just fundamentally disagree. That is going to hurt job creation.

A new poll shows that Medicare cuts are very, very unpopular – even among supposed cut freaks, tea partiers.

The Tea Party movement is supposed to be the engine driving Republicans’ push for sharp cuts to spending and reform entitlements. Representative Paul Ryan’s 2012 budget, which passed the House last week, phases out Medicare for people under 55 and turns Medicaid into block grants. But it turns out that Tea Partiers, like most Americans, strongly oppose cutting Medicare and Medicaid. A new McClatchy-Marist poll shows 70 percent of “Tea Party supporters” oppose cutting those programs–and 80 percent of registered voters agree.

Keep grippin’ that third rail Republicans! Perhaps Republicans will start listening to David Frum, who realizes that the best bet for the future of the GOP is to work with the welfare state.

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Opinionated chemist, troublemaker, blogger on national and Delaware politics.

Comments (6)

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  1. Jason330 says:

    Epic fail. Lower taxes for rich people create jobs, uh huh… That’s why the economy is booming right now.

  2. skippertee says:

    Did you see how he turned his back on his constituent asking the question and was fiddling with his fucking graphs or some shit?
    Man, I would have BRACED him RIGHT THERE.
    “HEY, I’m TALKING to you. Don’t turn your back on me. SHOW ME some respect.That’s the problem with you politicians! You have NO RESPECT for your constituents!”

  3. anon2 says:

    I noticed that too. He did not like where the question was going and was fiddling with his whiteboard to prevent himself from revealing a volcanic hatred of the little people. Wingnut politicians who are successful have mastered a sort of unnatural calm to conceal their insanity. In politics, sincerity is everything – if you can fake that, you’ve got it made.

  4. anon says:

    The entire Republican party is now perched on the third rails like birds on a wire. Democrats are showing signs of turning the juice back on, but not the 2000-volt blast that is needed.

    Remember how the Repubs all got out there though, was by Obama consistently choosing Republican or at least blue-dog frames for every major debate, making politics safe for teabaggers. So while it is nice to see Repubs exposed, it is a dangerous game of brinkmanship created by Democrats themselves. It was Democrats who turned the juice off the third rails and let the Repubs get so far out there.

    Unfortunately some Dems have a hand on the rails themselves, with no real leadership pressure warning them to step back. And Obama has a history of helping Republicans back from the edge rather than pushing them off.

  5. socialistic ben says:

    skip, somehow i find it hard to believe you would have stayed so calm 😉

  6. skippertee says:

    sb- yeah….you’re right. They probably would have removed me in hand-cuffs.