Paul Ryan on MSNBC: "Let's have an honest debate"

Paul Ryan speaks with Katrina vanden Heuvel and Carlos Watson on MSNBC on health care
July 29, 2009

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PARTIAL TRANSCRIPT

Carlos Watson, MSNBC: You wrote recently in an op-ed in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

Before members even had time to read the 1,000-page bill, it already has cleared two major House committees and is set to be fast-tracked through Congress in the days and weeks ahead. Those members of Congress who voted for this bill already in their committees did so without knowing what the legislation costs. Before it's too late, let's take a closer look.

Is this a genuine complaint?


Congressman Paul Ryan:

I dont think we should pass bills that we havent read and dont know what they cost. I dont think that is being effusive. I have already proposed legislation, and a number of Republicans are proposing alternatives. You can look at The Patients Choice Act or go to my Facebook page and youll see that there are many proposals that we have put out there.

We want to see health care reform done, but we want to do it right. If you rush this thing through before anyone even knows what it is, thats not good democracy. Thats not doing our work for our constituents. Whats wrong with going home for August having town hall meetings, listening to our constituents, and then coming back in September and doing this right?

The problem that this plan has experienced is it has run straight into the facts. The facts are that the Congressional Budget Office is telling us this makes our fiscal situation worse. It increases healthcare costs, it doesnt decrease healthcare costs. This new entitlement that is being proposed grows faster than Medicare and Medicaid. It creates huge deficits now, and will create even larger deficits in the future. Thats not my opinion, thats what CBO is telling us. That does not meet the Presidents goal of bending the cost curve down and being deficit neutral.

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Katrina Vanden Heuvel:
You have good government-plan health care. Why shouldnt all Americans have what you have?


Paul Ryan:

I have good private-sector healthcare. We do not have a public option. The federal employee plan lists a number of private plans to choose from to select and my employer, the taxpayer, pays for a portion of these private plans.

There is no public plan option in the Federal Employee Health Benefits Program. You are mistaken on that point.

For more: http://www.opm.gov/INSURE/HEALTH/INDEX.ASP

My Patients Choice Act that I've introduced with Congressman Nunes, Senators Burr and Coburn actually proposes just what youre suggesting: give people the ability, in State-based exchanges, to have a plan just like what we have here in Congress. A private health care plan thats actuarially equivalent to what we in Congress have.

We actually had a vote in the House Ways and Means Committee on an amendment I offered with Congressman Dean Heller which said, Lets put Members of Congress in this public health care plan so that we can experience the same thing we want to impose on the rest of the country. You know what? That amendment failed on nearly a party-line vote.

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Katrina Vanden Heuvel:
Competition is at the heart of America. To deny Americans competition by denying them the option of a public plan seems to me to be un-American.


Paul Ryan:

Whats weird about that line right there, Katrina, is that I know you and others are very much in favor of a single-payer plan, which is obviously to deny competition and have the government run it all. Whats concerning about this debate with me is that youre using capitalist rhetoric to try and move a plan that is inherently anti-market.

The problem is that the facts tell us this: A public plan option quickly becomes a government-run monopoly.The actuaries are telling us is that in a few short years, the public plan option displaces the private sector, employers dump their employees on the public plan, and then they have no choices but the public plan.

And so, lets not try to sell a government-run plan using free market rhetoric. Lets have an honest debate about what this bill is all about.

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Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• paul-ryan
• health-care
• wisconsin
• washington
• congress
• ways-and-means

[devonnicholson]

You are wrong when you say everyone knows tax breaks don't help the country. Every time in all of history when you lower taxes you increase revenue. So even though the rate is lower, the total $ amount taken in by the government goes up. So relax, you'll still get your money for entitlement programs etc... but revenue goes up because there's more money to invest in the private sector. So by lowering taxes everyone wins. Do some homework, don't rely on our leftist educational system!

[InYourMomsBox]

ha paul ryan really shut her up good.

[MrRazzeldazzel88]

@devonnicholson are you fucking kidding? your statement makes NO sense

[Piglatinsuperstar]

@GodotheInfantry

btw, why would you want less regulation on business? Last I heard, they were making RECORD PROFITS so that means they arent exactly hurting

and furthermore, I heard these corporations were just SITTING ON TRILLIONS when they COULD BE PAYING TAXES so that money could be used to pay down our DEFICIT. if they're just sitting on it and not hiring, then they should have their taxes raised. That is common sense government

[Piglatinsuperstar]

@GodotheInfantry

who cares if you're offended? what you think doesnt matter and I say that in the nicest way since your kind is ignorant, uneducated, then you are the least informed so you should stay quiet until you have the balls to go out and get yourself a formal education. becuz as I've said before, we might be willing to listen to some one MORE educated than ouselves but NEVER less educated. BTW, how's that republican congress working out for you?

[GodotheInfantry]

@Piglatinsuperstar I find it very telling that you went on a rant, and insulted me and the Republicans insisting on our ignorance, but failed to make even one point on economics. Arguing with liberals is like trying to reason with a small child. You might as well call me a booger head. Idiot.

[Piglatinsuperstar]

@GodotheInfantry

your ignorance astounds me. why are yourkind so fearful of learning economics? even McCain said it of himself that "I am weak in this area. I wish someone would teach me"

in general, this is very true of all conservatives, they are very poorly educated in this subject and yet, YOU ACTUALY THINK YOU KNOW MORE THAN THE REST OF US! I find this amazing that here in this country, we have a sect that knows nothing on the subject yet speak about it as tho they were the authority

[Piglatinsuperstar]

@GodotheInfantry

you talking "top down economics". it doesnt work, that's why. SHow me any econ text used at the College, University, or even High School level that teaches it. they dont b/c there's no basis behind it and why teach principles that dont work in practice? only republicans teach this nonsense b/c it sounds good to them and brings back memories of Reagan

Under Reagannomics (top down) he raise taxes on middleclass 12X while trippling the deficit

[GodotheInfantry]

@Piglatinsuperstar Increased revenue power to the federal government does not improve our society. Liberty does. Letting the people that earned their wealth keep more of it is in line with the principles on which this country was founded. What do you liberals not understand about that?

[Piglatinsuperstar]

@SpartanCXVII

wow good for you!

too bad Reaganomics isnt High School OR College

and your statement has to be proven, which you werent able to do. Not even an illustration

and why? becuz it's baseless. So where does the added revenue come from?

You cut spending, there go government, state jobs, and there goes revenue along with it resulting in higher deficits not to mention the fact that neighboring businesses suffer the effects

what's so hard to understand about that?

[SpartanCXVII]

@Piglatinsuperstar Yeah that spending.

No. The tax cuts increased revenue. Why is that so hard to understand?

And I am taking an economics class at school.