Steve Benen has pointed out that the AARP has responded to Paul Ryan’s attack on the organization as being a “a left-leaning pressure group.” The GOP’s Austerity Czar had hurt feefees because the association representing over 40 million members did not like his galtian fantasy budget. And so Ryan attacked the AARP as corrupt group that opposes his RyanCare because they only want to make money through selling branded health insurance plans mandated by the ACA.
Turns out that the AARP took exception to Ryan’s smear and pushed back (emphasis added):
“We make decisions on policy based on what we believe will be in the best interests of Americans over age 50. A recent attack on AARP from a political action committee erroneously suggests otherwise. The truth is that the budget plan passed by the House probably would present more opportunities for AARP to strengthen its finances, since every older American would be forced into private Medicare plans, including those that AARP brands.
“But we opposed the legislation nonetheless because we believe the goal should be to strengthen Medicare, not upend it, just as we’ve expressed concern about alternative plans that could use unelected boards to cut Medicare benefits. That has been AARP’s long-stated position, and the well-being of those who need Medicare is the only ‘interest’ we have in this debate.”
In the fight between wingnutopia and the AARP, I’ll put my money on the latter group. The AARP has a lot of credibility with their members and in one sentence they pretty much destroyed RyanCare. That should get some wingnuts nervous when they have their occasional lucid moments.
OTHO, it will encourage most of the nutters just to double down on attacks of AARP as they try to turn it into the new ACORN. I sense a nifty Breitbart/O’Keefe hit job coming down the pike. This should be fun. I wonder who will win…
Cheers