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Medicare Is Dead—Long Live Medicare: Steele

By Harry Kimball,  Newser Staff

Posted Aug 25, 2009 2:30 PM CDT
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(Newser) – RNC Chairman Michael Steele continued his simultaneous defense of and onslaught on Medicare today, writes Eric Kleefeld of Talking Points Memo. Dems are “proposing up to $550 billion in cuts or shifting of funds out of Medicare, and I don't know what that means,” Steele said on Fox News. In other words, it must be protected. But when it comes to systemic reform, “Medicare is a very good example of what we should not have happen with all of our health care.” Private markets, not the government, must run health care, he says.

When Steele was asked how he could be so disdainful and supportive of the program for seniors at the same time, he took the middle road. “This is the system that over 40 years we have bought into,” he said. “So let's get it right, let's fix it. But we do not have to replicate this system.” Steele also bought in to the “Death Book” story: apparently, there’s “a manual out there telling our veterans stuff like, 'are you really of value to your community,' you know, encouraging them to commit suicide. I mean, this is crazy coming from the government.”

Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele.
Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele.   (AP Photo)
A summary of the 2009 annual reports sits on a table at the Treasury Department in Washington.
A summary of the 2009 annual reports sits on a table at the Treasury Department in Washington.   (AP Photo)
Trays of printed social security checks wait to be mailed from the U.S. Treasury's Financial Management services facility in Philadelphia.
Trays of printed social security checks wait to be mailed from the U.S. Treasury's Financial Management services facility in Philadelphia.   (AP Photo)
Michael Steele speaks at the annual Indiana GOP state dinner in Indianapolis, Wednesday, July 8, 2009.
Michael Steele speaks at the annual Indiana GOP state dinner in Indianapolis, Wednesday, July 8, 2009.   (AP Photo/Tom Strickland)
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[Medicare] under absolute government control has inefficiencies and has costs that we—that the government doesn't want to seem to deal with. To make that larger puts us in a bigger bind than we are right now. - Michael Steele

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COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 23 comments
riffran
Aug 26, 2009 4:12 AM CDT
Re-posted due to the offensive flagging...and to piss the left off......." Washington is indeed full of crooks and lawyers. An inordinate share of politicians are both. Too bad democrats are so in love with socialism and big government. If they would get onboard with us we could get some useful changes implemented: like shutting down illegal immigration, removing costly regulations on industry, reducing taxes and returning American jobs to America. All the democrats wanna do is raise taxes, create more expensive social programs and stifle industry with more regulation (like the disastrous cap and trade scam). Give up Marxism and come back to America democrats--we'll forgive you for your foolishness".........lets see how long it takes this to get flagged
OWLWOMANXXXX
Aug 26, 2009 1:51 AM CDT
the health care system is screwed up now....and we want to give wall street more????????????
OWLWOMANXXXX
Aug 26, 2009 1:49 AM CDT
does this guy want to take Grandma's insurance away?????????????????????

 
veterans • Medicare • health care reform • Obama administration • chairman • President Obama • Michael Steele • Republican National Committee

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