Opinion by: Krystal Ball
Corporate backed centrist think tank Third Way just poll-tested a bunch of Medicare for All attacks with hilarious results. So here’s the background. Let’s start with the money. Third Way has in the past been funded by the Koch brothers, and Pharma, a coalition of drugmakers who of course oppose Medicare for All. There’s another tie of note here as well.
Sahil Kapur over at Bloomberg who broke this story points out that Third Way and Joe Biden just happen to share the same polling firm.
What are the odds?
Biden of course has been incredibly aggressive in attacking Medicare for All.
Third Way, of course, has been equally aggressive in prosecuting the case. Jim Kessler, Third Way’s EVP for policy told Bloomberg that: “Trump is deeply underwater on health care and the only lifeline that could pull him to shore is Medicare for All.” Maybe. But that’s sure not what shows up in the poll that his group commissioned. So, check it out.
Like many polls before it, Third Way’s found Medicare for All with majority support among all voters, among independent voters, and overwhelming support among Democratic voters. It’s more popular than Obamacare and way more popular than the health insurance companies that centrists are so sure everyone loves. That’s some Trump lifeline there guys!
Even after explaining to people that Medicare for All meant ending private insurance coverage, it still received majority support among all voters and 70% support among Democrats.
But also revealing were the attacks on Medicare for All that Third Way tested out. Literally every one was either completely bogus or misleading in some important and significant way. For example, they asked people how they’d feel about Medicare for All if it meant “Ending medicare as we know it.” Of course this is completely ridiculous. Medicare for All adds additional coverage to medicare for things like dentures, hearing aids and vision.
Senior advisor to the Sanders campaign Warren Gunnels called this particular line of attack “Disgusting” and I can’t disagree. Scaring and misleading seniors is the lowest of the low.
But the strongest attack line they tested was this one which will likely sound familiar to you.
Medicare for All “Would cost taxpayers $3.2 trillion a year and double payroll taxes for every working American.”
This, of course, leaves out the fact that every working American would come out ahead because they would no longer be paying for health care! Costs are costs. But not in the bizarre world of these fabricated attacks. Of course, you’ll be stunned to learn that this is the exact line of misleading attack that Biden’s campaign has been peddling. Just imagine that. Here’s Biden just yesterday in Iowa:
You know what else costs a lot of money? The current immoral mess where we are gouged by health insurers and Big Pharma who jack up prices and deny needed care all in the name of the almighty dollar. In the last quarter, the last quarter alone, health insurers racked up $47 billion dollars in profits all on your back. Drugmakers raked in $33 billion dollars in profits again, just in the last quarter. Mr. Vice President, you can’t beat Trump by not being straightforward. Level with people on how much our current system costs. Americans are getting ripped off every day while the rest of the developed world scratches their head in bewilderment over why we would continue on this path and especially why a Democrat would be the leading opponent of Universal Healthcare.
So nice try y’all. Feel free to proceed with your industry backed, poll tested smears of Medicare for All but the public, they’re not buying it. And you can just ask Kamala Harris how well it goes when you try to focus group a health care plan rather than just doing what’s right.
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