December 25, 2009

In 2003 Republicans were in total control of the US government and so they pushed through a Medicare Prescription plan without paying for it. This added significantly to the national deficit because there were no off sets in the form of new taxes and spending cuts to pay for the program. They didn't care.

Their Medicare drug program will probably cost a trillion dollars in 10 years which is more than the entire health care reform package being worked on now. The big difference between then and now is that the health care reform package will actually pay for itself. The Republican drug plan adds to the deficit each year and does it forever.

Republicans did not see any reason to pay for programs they wanted starting in 2000. The pay as you go rules the Democratic party followed in the 1990s was not something they liked. Now they whine Democrats are adding to the deficit and have vigorously opposed any heath care reform based on its costs.

What hypocrites.

Their party added trillions to the deficit when they were in power and saw it as the way to easily shift money from citizens to big businesses and the rich. Medicare Part D did just that for drug companies as the tax cuts did for the wealthy.

Senator Orin Hatch a Republican said it was a common practice to not pay for things when Republicans were in control. He is right about that. But now he and his buddies claim the spending problem must be addressed because of the poor economy. They conveniently forget that their conservative economic policies ( aka lack of regulatory oversight) lead to the recession starting in 2007 and to the economic implosion in 2008. What they did caused us to be in the mess we have now.

And now they complain.

Republicans who voted for Medicare Part D and tax cuts for the rich do not have the right to criticize any program proposed by the Democrats. None.