Tim Pawlenty Says He Would Back Paul Ryan's Medicare Plan

Source: ABC News

Republican presidential candidate and former Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty says that while he plans to introduce his own budget plan in coming weeks, if he were president today and it came to his desk, he would support Rep. Paul Ryan’s (R-WI) budget proposal to overhaul the Medicare system.

“Let me start by saying my campaign is based around the notion that it's time for the truth, so as to Medicare, everybody knows it's sinking. It's going broke,” Pawlenty told This Week anchor Christiane Amanpour. “So we have to fix it.”

“I'll have my own plan. It will have some differences” from the Ryan proposal, Pawlenty added, saying his budget plan will address Social Security reform, which Ryan’s does not. “But if the only choice is we're doing nothing, like President Obama is doing and Paul Ryan's plan, I'd sign it.”

Pawlenty had sidestepped a firm answer on whether he would support the Ryan budget for much of his first week on the campaign trail, before making similar comments in support of Ryan's plan in New Hampshire on Thursday.


Read more: http://blogs.abcnews.com/thenote/2011/05/tim-pawlenty-says-he-would-back-paul-ryans-medicare-plan.html

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I guess Republicans are now doubling down on destroying Medicare. It has become a Grover Norquist litmus test. Thus, a Republican Presidential and Congressional victories in 2012 will be pushed as a mandate to destroy Medicare and Unions.

:applause:

... these Republicans live in such a bubble of bullshit, they can't spot the truth when it is two feet away.

Nobody is going to win an honest election with this position.

"How much will your donors be giving you if this Ryan shtick passes?" "Paw-LENty!"

Doh!

Apologies to weasels and pigs.

the RyanDeathCare plan!

Yup! You stand firm and tell MILLIONS of Americans that you want to turn Medicare into VoucherCare!

So many of them appear to be committing political suicide. It is absolutely surreal.

If they don't do it now, they never will. They want their decisive battle while they're at the peak of their strength.

as if they know their time in power is short, so they want to accomplish as much as they can while they can. They know if they don't speak in unison, they will be cast out of the party. Must really suck to be a republican politician.

I mean, it's better than them toning down their disdain for the working class and trying to sound moderate and populist-ty just to win the election...only for them to turn into trojan horse fascists once they are elected. They already tried this and they overplayed their hand, so now they're going to try to salvage what they can, come what may.

but I get what's meant.

That does seem to be their agenda. I seriously don't think they aim to actually "accomplish" anything other than to make the Obama administration look bad and to feed their corporate masters.

They know that the tide will turn, and the majority of the nation is progressive on many, many issues. They have simply been able to drown out the vast majority being so vocal, and hijacking the issues that plague our country with hollow rhetoric.

But their miscalculation that the loyal 30% Republicans will stick by them even on killing Medicare I think speaks volumes of their arrogance.

They will be in for a surprise in 2012!

Yes, I'm actually optimistic for the reasons you mention.

That seems to be the new program: the Republicans do radical crazy-ass shit, and when the Dems get in, they at most undo part of it, or more often, accept what the GOP did as the new status quo and tell us to be thankful they're giving us a breather until the GOP figures out how to get back in office and start the process again.

He would then move slightly leftward to win the general.

the early years- he is the one in the middle

The banks and other conservative investments are paying next to no interest. Social Security is the only real income most seniors can count on. That includes the majority of Republican seniors.

And Medicare? My right-wing Republican relative especially waited until days after her 65th birthday for a certain expensive surgery so that it would be paid by Medicare. Republicans love their Medicare.

"Blowin' in the Wind."

Whatever appears to benefit him at the moment is the position he espouses.

Once the right-wing activist crowd has been appeased with assurances from the GOP candidates that they will most certaily support the Ryan voucher plan, the eventual nominee will beat a hasty retreat back to the center and claim that the Ryan plan was merely a starting point, and that Medicare must not be messed with. This might score points with some independent voters, but the Teabaggers will realize they've been stiffed, and will start singing a different tune:

"Most Likely You Go Your Way and I'll Go Mine" :mad:

GEORGEE COULDN'T WIN. he can backpedal after.

No republican can get nominated unless they parrot the entire Tea Party orthodoxy, with no deviation whatsoever allowed. (Ask Newt Gingrich.) It reminds me of McCain's recent statement that "of course" Palin would beat Obama for president, which is both idiotically false and absolutely necessary for him to say if he doesn't want to get crucified (Newtified?).

The need to kowtow to the farthest-out extremists in the party has republicans saying some remarkably stupid things lately. The things whoever wins the primaries had to say to get the nomination will be replayed endlessly during the general campaign, eliminating any possibility of them winning the actual election.

This "Win the primary by being extreme, then move to the center to win the general" ploy has worked for the republicans before, but this was before the extremists became so very extreme as to be mistaken for people who are sick in the head.

I hope there's more like that Ore. Senator.

He seems desperate to win the nomination. He's saying all the right things for RWingers. It's so transparent.

D's do have a plan. It is called MEDICARE, and we have a plan to make it solvent by getting rid of the fraud and abuse, the redundancy, and making the rich pay their fair share. How to fix SS while we're at it? End the Bush tax cuts for the rich, and raise the cap on taxable income above $100,000. SIMPLE !

We can surely get their asses out of office, though.



Can't we?

Probably because it's extremely unpopular.

He goes through the drivethoughs saying that the car behind him will pay for his order. His idea of a good plan is to get three people to do him a favor and then each of them can get three other people to do them a favor.