Janelle Irwin Taylor
The nation’s largest Democratic super PAC is launching a social media campaign blasting President Donald Trump over potential cuts to Medicaid, Medicare and Social Security.
Priorities USA is running a series of digital ads including a graph breaking down potentially $1 trillion in cuts, most of which to Medicaid, the program that insures very low-income individuals.
The ads will run in Florida, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Arizona, states Democrats are targeting in the 2020 election. The ads will also run in Spanish in Florida and Arizona.
The graph shows a $920 billion cut to Medicaid with another $130 billion cut to Medicare and $24 billion from Social Security. ABC News reported the same Medicaid cuts, but showed cuts to Medicare at $451 billion.
In a video running on Facebook, Priorities USA highlights Trump’s 2016 campaign trail promise not to cut any of the social safety net programs.
“President Trump says he’s open to making cuts to Medicare and Social Security,” the video opens with a reporter announcing Trump’s new statement that cuts would be on the table.
Those cuts were confirmed in his recently released proposed budget.
“Donald Trump promised to protect Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security but continues to try and cut them while giving massive tax breaks to billionaires and big corporations,” Priorities USA Executive Director Patrick McHugh said. “We will continue to hold Trump accountable for these horribly misguided policy priorities — it’s important for people to know the truth about who Trump is really fighting for.”
The digital ads appear on the “Let’s Be Honest” page created last July to shed light on the reality of Trump’s economy.
“When the president, other politicians, and the media say the economy is great, it’s like they’re not talking about reality. Sure, Trump’s policies have made it great for the ultrawealthy, but regular people are paying for it with higher health care costs, tax hikes and Medicare and Social Security cuts,” the page describes. “We can’t afford it. And that’s why we’re speaking up. Because if Trump’s economy were really great, it would be benefitting all of us, not just those at the top.”
One comment
Ray Blacklidge
February 13, 2020 at 11:43 am
First off Jan this story is three (3) weeks old already. Second it’s just an article about the decades old threat the Democrats pull out every-time they are losing. “The Republicans are doing away with or cutting Social Security, Medicaid, and Medicare.” It hasn’t happened in decades and it’s not going to happen in the Trump administration. Just ask any Democrat in the tax or accounting field. Trump recently even stated “Democrats are going to destroy your Social Security. I have totally left it alone, as promised, and will save it!”
As far as Medicaid goes, the budget cuts Medicaid spending by about $920 billion over 10 years, a change Democrats and administration critics warn would lead to reductions in benefits and the number of people on the health care program.An allegation they have been making for decades yet it never happens.
A senior administration official defended the cut, noting it reflects a decrease in the rate at which Medicaid spending would grow rather than a reduction from current spending levels. The official said the administration would save money on Medicaid spending through new work requirements and recouping payments incorrectly spent by the federal government.
The largest parts of the Trump’s budget are “mandatory” spending programs that are automatically renewed each year without congressional approval, such as Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security. Trump said on Twitter Saturday that the budget “will not be touching your Social Security or Medicare.”
Overall, the budget proposes 5 percent net cuts in domestic discretionary spending, the category of government spending that covers agencies like HHS and the Education Department, but does not include Social Security or Medicare. Washington Post
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