Hannity ignored McCain's step back on 'No new taxes,' distorted Clinton's health care plan
SUMMARY: On Fox News, Sean Hannity said to Sen. John McCain, "You've said three times in the last week or week and a half that you promised no new taxes. You mean none." In response, McCain said, "None." However, in a Wall Street Journal interview, McCain did not rule out raising taxes. Later in the Fox News interview, Hannity suggested that Sen. Hillary Clinton's health care proposal would "nationalize health care," and McCain replied, "We tried this. We've seen this movie before back in 1993, OK? And it is a government takeover." In fact, Clinton's proposal would not "nationalize health care" or seek a "government takeover" of it.
During an interview with Sen. John McCain on the March 13 edition of Fox News' Hannity & Colmes, co-host Sean Hannity said to McCain, "You've said three times in the last week or week and a half that you promised no new taxes. You mean none." In response, McCain said, "None." Hannity then said, "Throughout your presidency." McCain replied, "No. And look, here we are, Americans are hurting, you know that, I know that. These are tough economic times. Do we want to raise their taxes and have the government take more of their money right now when they're facing these challenges?" However, in a March 3 Wall Street Journal interview, McCain did not rule out raising taxes. He was asked, "On ABC's 'This Week' on Feb. 17, in response to a question, 'Are you a 'read my lips' candidate, no new taxes?' you replied, 'No new taxes.' Did you mean that literally?" McCain responded, "I'm not making a 'read my lips' statement in that I will not raise taxes. But I'm not saying I can envision a scenario where I would, OK? But I'm not making it a centerpiece in my campaign."
Later in the Hannity & Colmes interview, Hannity and McCain both mischaracterized Sen. Hillary Clinton's health care proposal. Hannity asserted that if McCain is elected president, "We don't get Hillary-care. You're not gonna nationalize health care. You'd look for free-market solutions." McCain replied, "We tried this. We've seen this movie before back in 1993, OK? And it is a government takeover." In fact, Clinton's proposal would not "nationalize health care" or seek a "government takeover" of it. While the Clinton plan provides the option of government-managed health insurance, the plan does not provide for government-run health care. Indeed, in the speech announcing her plan, Clinton said:
Now I know my Republican opponents will try to equate health care for all Americans with government-run health care. Well don't let them fool us again. This is not government run. There will be no new bureaucracy. You can keep the doctors you know and trust. You keep the insurance you have if you like it. But this plan expands personal choice and increases competition to keep costs down.
According to a Clinton campaign summary of her health care program, "In addition to the broad array of private options that Americans can choose from, they will be offered the choice of a public plan option similar to Medicare." The Washington Post's Fact Checker blog reported on October 24, 2007, that "the Clinton plan does not force Americans to accept 'government insurance.' It offers people a choice. If they are happy with their present health plan, they can keep it. Otherwise, they can switch to the plans offered to members of Congress, or a government-run plan similar to Medicare."
From the interview published in the March 3 Wall Street Journal:
Q: On ABC's "This Week" on Feb. 17, in response to a question, "Are you a 'read my lips' candidate, no new taxes?" you replied, "No new taxes." Did you mean that literally?
A: I'm not making a "read my lips" statement in that I will not raise taxes. But I'm not saying I can envision a scenario where I would, OK? But I'm not making it a centerpiece in my campaign.
I want lower taxes. I want the family to keep more of their money.
From the March 13 edition of Fox News' Hannity and Colmes:
HANNITY: Let's look at the things that -- the areas where I know conservatives agree with you --
McCAIN: Sure, sure.
HANNITY: That we've gotta win the war --
McCAIN: That's a good beginning.
HANNITY: -- we gotta win the war in Iraq. We can't create a safe haven for Al Qaeda or [Iranian President Mahmoud] Ahmadinejad. I think all conservatives agree on that. And win the war. You have promised that you're gonna eliminate all earmarks.
McCAIN: Yes.
HANNITY: You've said three times in the last week or week and a half that you promised no new taxes. You mean none.
McCAIN: None.
HANNITY: Throughout your presidency.
McCAIN: No. And look, here we are, Americans are hurting, you know that, I know that. These are tough economic times. Do we want to raise their taxes and have the government take more of their money right now when they're facing these challenges?
I look forward to this debate between myself and Senator Clinton or Senator Obama. I will be respectful, but it'll be vigorous. And one of them is taxes. We can't raise people's taxes, particularly at this particular time.
And if you don't make the present tax cuts permanent, then you are gonna -- every family and business in America is gonna experience a tax increase. That's what this permanency of the tax cuts is all about.
[...]
HANNITY: Staying on the areas where you agree, where conservatives agree with you, you will not national --
McCAIN: OK, let's keep it up.
HANNITY: We don't get Hillary-care. You're not gonna nationalize health care. You'd look for free-market solutions.
McCAIN: We tried this. We've seen this movie before back in 1993, OK? And it is a government takeover and there is nothing -- it's one of my -- it's not an original line but it's a great one. Nothing is gonna be more expensive for America than free health care. OK? And we can make the highest-quality health care in the world affordable and available. And it's not the quality, it's the cost. And we can put in a lot of incentives that bring costs down and make it affordable and available, and let families make the choices of health care of their families, rather than the government.
Little Sean…a putz?
Forgedaboutit, Hannity’s a schmuck if ever there was one!
Any "free-market" solution on health care is no solution at all if it, like McCain's plan, does nothing to address the effect of age rating, medical underwriting and preexisting conditions. Hillary and Obama at least mention preexisiting conditions, but I really don't see any of the candidates changing the status quo and taking these important factors out of the equation when there's so much money to be made denying people coverage.
There is a joke going around, in my mailbox, about that economic stymulus package and where to spend it. If you buy something, it will probably go offshore, most likely China or india, even VietNam ( according to W Buffet ). However if you spend the money on a prostitute, the dollars stay here. I am personally giving that money ( or a big portion of it ) to my church building fund/maintenance.
So your church (or its contractor) cna go to Home Depot or Lowes and buy building materials that are Made in China.
Face it - virtually every business transaction in teh USA today benefits a foreign country, thanks to Reagan's conversion of the US economy from manufacturing-based to service-based.
LIBERAL COMMUNIST AMERICA?
Pete & Roundhouse... you're right on!!
Politicians don't want to talk about the elephant in the room that is the record profits of our health care industry. And by this, I don't mean doctors... but health care companies.
By personal experience, doctors who have treated my family for various procedures have accepted (mostly through insurance plans) paultry sums for the skill and value of surgeries performed. However, the hospital bills have been extravagant on more than one occasion. In fact, one of the bills we're contesting was for surgery done at a university hospital which would have been less expensive at one of the corporate hospitals in the area.
Then about two months later, a published report notes record profits for hospitals across the area, as the owning corporations fight blood matches to build hospitals in growing regions around this area.
However, these profits are generated because there is no "free market" system in health care. HMOs and PPOs, by nature, limit their lists of in-network doctors and facilities to those with which they contract. As a result, one must pick their doctor... and hope that the doctor performs procedures at one of the "in-network" hospitals. And the clincher for the "free market" mirage of GOP rhetoric... you cannot get quotes for procedures prior to their execution.
And prior to surgical procedures, you often have no foreknowledge or knowledge of all about many of the drugs that are administered until the bill comes. Even then, the list of charges on a hospital bill are difficult to verify.
Anytime you hear a Republican talk about a "free market" health plan, it means "I have no plan beyond the status quo". I was told last night by a conservative friend of mine who says we have the best health care system in the world, I had to point to a Commonwealth Fund study that shows we pay more for health care than any other developed nation... and experience the highest error rate. The U.S. is also tops in the world in preventable deaths from treatable conditions... presumably because of difficult access to health insurance.
FYI, I haven't read any of this... and I will... but here is a link to the Commonwealth Fund's articles on the candidates' health care proposals.
http://www.commonwealthfund.org/General/General_show.htm?doc_id=670761