Cross-posted from Minnesota Progressive Project
On this 46th anniversary of Medicare and Medicaid, one wonders what the champion of these programs, former Vice-President Hubert Humphrey, would think of the Republicans efforts to dismantle the programs and of the Democrats response to the right wing's persistent assault on the working class.
We already know Rep. Chip Cravaack's radical right wing solution to the debt ceiling crisis: cut government services to people in order to protect the wealthy and big corporations. Cravaack and his Tea Party colleagues made this abundantly clear when they voted against an amendment to send the budget bill back to committee with instructions to eliminate subsidies to big oil and for corporate jets instead of making cuts to the Pell grant program. And Cravaack refused to support the Boehner plan because it didn't go far enough in eliminating programs that help people.
Cravaack's extreme Tea Party agenda clearly does not reflect the values of Humphrey Country.
Minnesota's Happy Warrior left little doubt as to his feelings in what has become a favorite quote of many:
It was once said that the moral test of government is how that government treats those who are in the dawn of life, the children; those who are in the twilight of life, the elderly; and those who are in the shadows of life, the sick, the needy and the handicapped.
Former Congressman Rick Nolan echoes the beliefs of his late friend and colleague in what he calls 'A Common Sense DEMOCRATIC Solution to the Debt Ceiling Crisis':
1. Take Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid benefits off the table – period. Social Security is an independent trust fund, solvent when the government stops borrowing against it. Medicare and Medicaid can be reformed to lower administrative costs, deal with multi-billion dollar fraud and abuse, and allow the government to negotiate with pharmaceutical companies to lower Part D costs.
2. End the Bush tax cuts for the rich. Economists point out that alone would cut the future deficit by one-third to one-half, back to sustainable levels.
3. End multi-trillion dollar wars of choice in the Middle East. And bring home hundreds of thousands of troops stationed around the world in nations such as Japan, which pose no security threat to the United States.
4. Cut the Pentagon budget by 15 per cent. Many military experts agree we should eliminate expensive, unnecessary weapons systems and actually make our defenses and more efficient.
5. Re-invest in America’s infrastructure. Let’s take what we save from those Middle East wars of choice, and from reducing America’s worldwide military footprint, and re-invest it in roads, bridges, rail and light rail, airports, schools and other public facilities. We can put millions of unemployed Americans back to work, contributing again to the economy and putting America back on the right economic track.
Nolan also agrees with what many moderates, liberals and trade-unionists have been pleading with Democratic elected officials to understand:
"We can’t solve America’s problems by caving in to the radical right".
Finally, a Democrat who understands that 'liberal' is not a four letter word and that people matter.
Hubert is smiling.