I’m enjoying watching the Republicans pretend that Paul Ryan’s plan is a good, sensible plan that can be sold to the American public as fiscally responsible and fair. Forcing their members to vote for that plan was the most electorally irresponsible thing I’ve ever seen a party do. They are deriving almost no benefit from it, and the costs are going to be staggering.
Their problems would be worse if outfits like Politico didn’t report at face value that the plan would at least save us money. All Ryan’s plan would do is reduce people’s health benefits, leave the elderly underinsured (or not insured), slash Pell Grants and infrastructure investments, and take the savings and give them to rich people. It wouldn’t reduced the deficit; it would reduce rich people’s tax burden. That’s not fiscal responsibility; it’s more Bush economics.
As things stand, the Republicans have royally screwed themselves but they are at least succeeding in getting the press to portray them as deficit hawks (maybe even fanatics). Things are bad for them, but with a more disciplined and honest media, things would be considerably worse.
