Sen. Rick Scott has finally folded, and President Joe Biden didn’t hesitate to savor the victory.
Last February, the Florida senator unveiled his evil little 11-point “Rescue America” plan. Point Five promised ”No government assistance unless you are disabled or aggressively seeking work,” and that “All Americans should pay some income tax to have skin in the game, even if a small amount.” But it was Point Six in the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) chair’s dystopian plan that really raised eyebrows: “All federal legislation sunsets in 5 years.” Those six words (and a number) suddenly put Social Security and Medicare, among other key legislation, in more peril at the hands of Republicans than usual.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell couldn’t separate himself from the plan fast enough, saying in March that “We will not have as part of our agenda a bill that raises taxes on half the American people, and sunsets Social Security and Medicare within five years."
The battle has raged on between Scott and McConnell, and Republicans and Democrats, ever since. But it peaked in a particularly skillful moment during Biden’s Feb. 7 State of the Union address, when the president tricked Republicans in both chambers into standing up and applauding his off-script question: “So folks, as we all apparently agree, Social Security and Medicare is off the books, right?”
Scott wasn’t above taking feedback. After all, it’s a 12-point plan now, because Scott realized “Cutting Taxes” polls better than his original plan to raise taxes, and added it later. But on Friday, Scott finally did what he would not do for nearly a year: He edited his “Rescue America” plan to explicitly say Social Security and Medicare were not included in his little “sunset every five years” bullet point. And the Biden administration didn’t hesitate to get a jab in at him.
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First, the edit, as reported by The Hill’s Alex Bolton Friday morning.
Now, it’s hard not to laugh at the fact that the senator addressed his little edit to the president, the Senate Minority Leader, and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. But once you’ve caught your breath, White House deputy press secretary Andrew Bates is here to take it away again, with an artful zinger for the ages, aimed squarely at Sen. Scott.
“We congratulate Senator Scott on joining the post-State of the Union red wave of Republicans acknowledging that they have, in fact, been attempting to put Medicare and Social Security on the chopping block. For the past year he has explained the absence of an exception by saying, ‘If it’s worth keeping, we’re going to keep it.’
“But make no mistake, his true colors are undeniable and on the record. Cutting Medicare and Social Security benefits is a longstanding passion of Senator Scott’s, as it is for the majority of House Republicans who comprise the Republican Study Committee and many of his Senate colleagues, ranging from John Thune to Ron Johnson. For example, in the 1990s Senator Scott supported fully privatizing Medicare. And now, by supporting repeal of the Inflation Reduction Act, Senator Scott is pursuing the biggest Medicare benefits cut in a generation just so Big Pharma can receive a debt-worsening bailout.
“We thank Senator Scott for continuing to share his heart with the world. We always support him doing so.”
More of this, please—both getting the Republicans to change their tune, and sparing the gushing praise when they do.
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