Search This Blog

Divided We Stand

Divided We Stand
New book about the 2020 election.

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

American Crossroads Pits Obama v. Obama

American Crossroads is running an ad juxtaposing inconsistent statements by President Obama about the health-care mandate.  The Huffington Post reports:
The spot is essentially on target. The Obama campaign, at one point, went so far as to raise the specter of the infamous "Harry and Louise" ad against Clinton's mandate plan. That ad, of course, was key in defeating Clinton's original push for health care reform when she was first lady.

"Hillary's health care plan forces everybody to buy insurance, even if you can't afford it," said a flyer produced by Obama's campaign in 2008.

What the Crossroads spot leaves out is that the Affordable Care Act includes significant subsidies to help people buy insurance if they cannot afford it.
But so did the Clinton plan that Obama attacked.  As The New York Times reported at the time: "She would create new options for buying private or public insurance at affordable rates, require everyone to obtain insurance, and provide subsidies and tax credits to small businesses and individuals who could not afford it.