NYT: Drug Plan's Start May Imperil G.O.P.'s Grip on Older Voters

[Rose Siding]

Older voters, a critical component of Republican Congressional victories for more than a decade, could end up being a major vulnerability for the party in this year's midterm elections, according to strategists in both parties. Paradoxically, one reason is the new Medicare drug benefit, which was intended to cement their loyalty.

During next week's Congressional recess, Democrats are set to begin a major new campaign to highlight what Representative Nancy Pelosi of California, the Democratic leader, describes as "this disastrous Republican Medicare prescription drug plan." Democratic incumbents and challengers plan nearly 100 public forums around the country, armed with briefing books and talking points on a law that, party leaders assert, "was written by and for big drug companies and H.M.O.'s, not American families."

Recognizing the widespread criticism of the new drug program, Republican senators met in a closed session with administration officials this week to discuss the rocky rollout of the plan and prepare for questions back home.

But pollsters say the Republicans' difficulties with the over-60 vote go beyond the complicated drug benefit, which began Jan. 1. President Bush's failed effort to create private accounts in Social Security last year was also unpopular with many older Americans. That, in addition to confusion over the drug benefit, has "taken the key swing vote that's been trending the Republicans' way and put it at risk for the next election," said Glen Bolger, a Republican pollster. "And what that means is Republicans are going to have to work extra hard."

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/19/politics/19older.html?ex=1298005200&en=2fbfba473151ca68&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss

[msongs]

1. here is MY tv ad on this subject ->

"the republicans have a health plan for you.

It's called...get sick and die"

end of commercial

Msongs
www.msongs.com/democratsmugs.htm

[rodeodance]

3. hey, short and sweet. I would work

[Mythsaje]

5. That's what I call taking the gloves off...

Beautiful.

[bread_and_roses]

9. Perfect! And words for EVERYONE not only seniors!

That the Democrats do not capitalize on the health care mess - with polls showing that a majority of Americans favor some kind of National health care ... is enough to make one despair.

But if they don't address this abysmal failure of a drug/insurance Co. give-a-way with Seniors - those reliable voters who are mad as hell over this - then I have to believe they are either brain-dead or indeed well and truely bought.

[WhiteTara]

10. that's absolutely to the point

should be quite effective.

[wakeme2008]

15. You forgot

"empty your bank account then die"

[liberalhistorian]

22. Exactly!

That makes it even better! As does "empty your bank account, give up your house and all your assets, then die."

[JDPriestly]

29. The funny thing is that they are telling young people

that they will be impoverished by supporting their aging parents in their retirement. Bush's plan will put even more of the burden of supporting aging parents on individual children -- by putting pressure on kids to support their parents in their old age and by requiring the parents to spend down all their savings as they age and thus reducing and often eliminating any hope of an inheritance for today's young people. The only winners in Bush's pension, Social Security, retirement and elderly policies are the wealthy who can live off their investments at virtually any age and successful owners of profitable business (the bigger the business the bigger the gain for the owners) whose pension and Social Security contributions and obligations the Bush administration is trying to reduce. The losers are the members of the younger generation who will be saddled with guilt if they don't provide for their parents and with a huge financial burden if they do provide.

A good solution: let's make it possible for seniors to work longer by enforcing decent work conditions and hours for people of all generations and severely punishing age discrimination in the workplace. How about damages of five times the actual wages lost for age discrimination plus attorney's fees for the worker who is discriminated against? How about shifting the heaviest burden of proof to the employer to prove it terminated or did not hire the older worker based on age rather than imposing that burden on the employee.

[teknomanzer]

28. Compassionate conservatism...

We are so sorry you're sick and have little or no health care...
if you hurry up and die you won't feel bad anymore.

We are so sorry you're poor and uneducated with few opportunities...
if you work three jobs you won't have time to worry about it.

We are so sorry you lost your home and family to the hurricane...
but now you get a $500 debit card and free shelter in a stadium, so it kind of just worked out well for you.

We are so sorry you lost loved ones to the terrorist attacks...
but now we can wage endless war, kill thousands across the globe, create a monstrous debt even your great great grandchildren won't be able to pay off, destroy precious American liberties, scare the crap out of you, wrap ourselves in the protective cover of the flag, and take a hefty profit to our banks in Switzerland and the Caymans.

God Bless 'murka.

P.S.

We are so sorry you still don't feel safe...
but placing the United Arab Emerites in charge of our Port security will make us a hefty little profit. Thanks for your vote suckers. And for those of you who did'nt vote for us... "Who cares what you think," and, "Go fuck yourself." We have Diebold bitches.

[rodeodance]

2. go for it Dems.

......During next week's Congressional recess, Democrats are set to begin a major new campaign to highlight what Representative Nancy Pelosi of California, the Democratic leader, describes as "this disastrous Republican Medicare prescription drug plan." Democratic incumbents and challengers plan nearly 100 public forums around the country, armed with briefing books and talking points on a law that, party leaders assert, "was written by and for big drug companies and H.M.O.'s, not American families."

[rodeodance]

4. i hate to see this--mostly more fibs will be spawned.

......Republicans are going to have to work extra hard."

[TexasLawyer]

6. Exactly

especially the people who sign up for a drug plan and find out that, by doing so, they have permanently and irrevocably signed away any drug benefits they may have had under an existing pension plan.

[WhiteTara]

7. that extra hard work includes Diebold

I am sure!

[oscar111]

8. Nationalize ALL FOUR CORNERS of healthcare, not just insurance, as last

campaign did.

the four are:

drs
Big Pill
hospitals/nursing homes
insurance

[Kurovski]

18. I was just going to say...

Diebold should help with this little problem:

"...confusion over the drug benefit, has "taken the key swing vote that's been trending the Republicans' way and put it at risk for the next election,"

[jwirr]

33. I'm a senior - since when did we lean toward the repugs?

[lovuian]

11. How many people can be screwed by Republicans before they

get it and healthcare in America effects EVERYONE!!!

[bvar22]

12. "which was intended to cement their loyalty" ?????

The Prescription Drug Benefit was designed solely to funnel $BILLIONS into the pockets of Pharm CEOs and Investors....nothing more.

It is functioning beautifully, as designed.

The Democratic Party is a BIG TENT, but there is NO ROOM for those
who advance the agenda of THE RICH (Corporate Owners) at the EXPENSE of LABOR and the POOR.

[babsbunny]

16. They don't care

They steal elections, remember? The Dems are doing nothing about it!

[Hekate]

23. Exactly my thought: "working as designed"

That misbegotten piece of legislation was written by people who don't believe in Social Security, Medicare, or any other social safety net. Period.

And it is driving my poor mother crazy.

Get this: in order to figure out what part of the plan they should sign up for, my mom, her brother, and his wife got together and the three of them thrashed it out. It took three old people -- two of whom have PhDs.

The godless, soulless, bastards that put it together -- :argh:

Hekate

[freefall]

13. Democrats better be talking about this disastrous plan and the dastardly

way it was pushed through Congress -- I should say the dastardly, Delay way it was pushed through Congress -- every chance they get. The Republicans lied about how much this would cost, flew in the face of House rules to pass it, and actually have the gall to say now that it is a good program. Ads should feature some of the Republican promises juxtaposed with people at their pharmacies being told their coverage is no good. States are picking up the tab for folks who didn't get put into the right database and now can't get their drugs. Another example of administration incompetence.

Also, as it stands now you can only change your plan once a year in January. But the plans can drop drugs in the middle of the year or change prices, etc. at any point during the year. A bill has been introduced to fix this incredibly ridiculous requirement. It will be a good idea to find out how each Republican (and Democrat too for that matter) votes on this one.

Peace,

freefall

:kick:

[wryter2000]

14. Poor babies

They're in deep doo-doo, aren't they? :evilgrin:

[JudyM]

17. Let us hope!

[mitchtv]

19. They would be in deep doodoo if

the Dems knew what to do. Now, what are the chances of that?

[freefall]

25. That's the point. Will the Dems know how to take advantage of

the mistakes the Repugs are making? History tells us no. I don't think we can take anything for granted. If we win anything this fall it will be due to lots of hard work and smarts.

on edit: Additionally, the Dems can't talk to much about some issues because they have been complicit. Not just Iraq, but the bankruptcy bill and others.

Peace

freefall

[jwirr]

34. Don't underestimate the Dems. They are the ones who

created most of the older social programs that ARE working. It would have been very simple to just add the drug costs to the list of items covered by Medicare but the *asses had to steal enough money for the drug pals. I know that these old programs do not always work but I think that is a state issue. If the state administering the program does not want such programs they will fail. I come from a generous blue state and our programs are working. But this new drug pusher program is purely red state repug.

[brer cat]

20. When we eliminate Diebold, this group can kill GOP.

I posted on an earlier thread regarding the current nationwide polls showing most (red) Southern states with support for the chimp below 50%. We don't have the demographics from the polls so we can only speculate about who is flipping. I'm in deep red GA, and the people that I know personally who supported * and now regret it are almost all blue hairs. They are not on the 'net and get their news only from msm. They bought the "I'm a uniter not a divider", thought * seemed like such a nice young Christian man, they listened to their ministers tell them to vote their faith (anti-abortion, anti-gays, etc.). It took a while but they know they were sold a bad bill of goods...and that was BEFORE the disaster of the drug bill. Except for the ultra-rich (who think Barb Bush is actually a human being), this is a natural democratic base that we lost and should easily regain.

[Cugel the Clever]

21. How ripe must the stench be?

I hope to God that this will awaken a portion of stupefied oldsters who suddenly realize that bashing gays and colored people does not a functional government make. Wake up, old people! These crooks are robbing you blind.

As so many have already pointed out, 2006 will either result in a significant reduction of power for BushCo, or it will be marked by history as the turning point in the fall of our nation.

Popular Will- blue-hairs, brown-skins, rednecks, and every other shade. Throughout America there is a clear and obvious call for a change in our current government. Even die-hards embarrass themselves defending BushCo's clownish incompetence and corruption.

Will the elections of 2006 reflect the will of the people, or is that a qaint notion whose time is past? Our nation's fate hangs in the answer to that question.

[holboz]

26. Great line, Cugel the Clever

"bashing gays and colored people does not a functional government make"

I can see that on a bumper sticker and variations thereof.

[ikojo]

24. Just wait until seniors hit the donut hole...the

period of time where THEY are responsible for the entire cost of their meds, until they meet the out of pocket maximum. This Medicare Part D was not well thought out and many more seniors will got without needed meds.

[RamboLiberal]

37. Over on Kos predicting they'll hit the donut hole right before the

election. And I imagine they will be pissed "Big Time". They better take it out on the damn Repukes! If I was a running Dem I'd make sure one of my ad featured this donut hole.

[ikojo]

38. I think many will hit the donut hole way before the

election....

[Canuckistanian]

27. Which Democrats voted for the Drug Plan?

I know there were nine of them. They have nothing to stand on in this fiasco.

[Higans]

30. It doesn't matter cause They will just make the Diebold machines

Say the the re-pug's won any way. they don't care about older voters, or middle aged voters or younger voters cause they don't even bother to count the votes any more any way.

[Akoto]

31. Senior citizens are a highly valuable block of voters.

More than that, I believe I've read somewhere that they (more than any other block) are likely to show up in majority to vote.

Sounds to me like you're rather screwed as a party if your choices deprive the seniors of their much-needed medications.

[eppur_se_muova]

32. "Republican Medicare prescription drug plan"

REPUBLICAN Medicare prescription drug plan.

REPUBLICAN Medicare drug plan.

REPUBLICAN Medicare plan.

Keep it simple, and keep repeating it.

[Trevelyan]

35. Does anyone know where to get advice on understanding Medicare if you

don't have a PhD? I will have to try to read Bradblog more carefully, I thought that Diebold was going under partly because they would not make their secret code known but read on another blog recently that California is stuck with Diebold for 2006.

[warrens]

36. 60 Minutes last night

Illustrated how congress was bribed to pass this and CAFTA, even though the majority opposed both bills. It would be a real value if someone could put together a 30-min. DVD on the subject for showing at community groups running up to the election.