(ConservativeHub.com) – On March 7, President Joe Biden revealed his plan to preserve Medicare amid tensions between Republicans and Democrats over the issue. According to POLITICO, Biden appears to be setting himself up as an ally to programs like Medicare and Social Security, challenging those who are pushing for heavy spending cuts.
The Hill reports that the loss of these entitlement programs would be most detrimental for older people, who are also the group with the highest consistent voting rates. While the Republicans have not yet put out a reform plan for the programs, The Hill reports that they are generally more open to reform than the Democratic side is, if it’s being done with government spending in mind. However, GOP leaders have, in recent weeks, denied any intention to cut or remove these programs.
Biden’s new proposal to protect Medicare would involve an increase in taxes for the wealthy and closing what he calls “loopholes” in current Medicare tax rates. According to him, the new plan would add enough to Medicare’s trust fund to keep it going past 2050. Reportedly, while it’s unlikely this plan will earn enough support in Congress to pass, Biden can still use it as a means to pressure the GOP and hurt their image. According to The Hill, he seems to be trying to paint Republicans as the “social safety net’s would-be destroyers.”
The entitlement programs were used by President Biden in February during his State of the Union address in order to criticize a plan from Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) which would require all federal legislation to sunset every five years without reauthorization from Congress. This would include Social Security and Medicare. Due to the tension that ensued over the comments about the programs sunsetting under this proposal, Scott amended his proposal to have the entitlement programs excluded from this specific provision.
Former President Trump has indicated he is also decisively against cuts on these programs and has criticized GOP members for wanting cuts on them. In February, Trump also took to his Truth Social platform to say that Florida leader Ron DeSantis (R) wanted to slash the programs.
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