2016 Postmortem
Related: About this forumHouse Majority Leader Insists On Keeping Obamacare Spending Cuts ‘On The Table’
Now that President Obama has secured reelection, his landmark health care reform law is here to stay. But that doesnt stop Republican leaders in Congress from continuing their crusade against Obamacare, which they have already wasted over 80 hours and more than $50 million dollars trying to repeal.
House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) is already looking ahead to 2013 and the so-called fiscal cliff, when House Republicans will likely continue to resist any revenue increases in favor of deep cuts to the social programs that protect the most vulnerable Americans. And Cantor is making it clear that includes slashing funding for critical health care programs like Obamacare, Medicare, and Medicaid:
While it is unrealistic for us to expect the President to embrace our vision of Medicare reform or Obamacare repeal, it is equally unrealistic for the President to continue to insist that Obamacare is off the table, or that Medicare and Medicaid require nothing more than some additional provider cuts. We will measure entitlement savings on the basis of whether they are sustainable and whether they actually bend down the cost curve.
But Cantors position is not actually in line with the majority of Americans preferences for the future of their health care programs. The majority of Americans would choose to raise revenue, particularly by increasing taxes on the rich, rather than slashing health care programs like Medicare. A full 90 percent of seniors are satisfied with their current Medicare plans, and majorities of American voters supported President Obamas policies on Medicare in the lead-up to the election.
http://thinkprogress.org/health/2012/11/08/1163121/cantor-obamacare-fiscal-cliff/