Mitt Romney’s pick in Rep. Paul Ryan as his vice-presidential running mate is so good, many may be wishing Ryan was leading the ticket.
Ryan makes no bones about his vision for America. And because Romney has yet to be definitive about his ideas for the country, Ryan is more than happy to fill in the details.
A bright future for the U.S., Ryan says, depends on largely undoing safety net services such as Medicaid and Medicare, revamping the income tax formula to favor the wealthy, and keeping defense spending at its all-time high.
This formula would reduce spending by about $6 trillion the first 10 years, according to the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office. But also would reduce income by $4 trillion.
If implemented, the CBO estimates the United States would get out of debt in 30 years — hardly an aggressive trajectory toward solvency.
MOST OF US would not enjoy the benefits of Ryan’s tax plans. While high-income earners would reap huge benefits, the other 95 percent of the U.S. population would experience none because deductions such as home mortgages would be eliminated.
For most Americans their homes — not their investments — are their biggest asset.
Ryan proposes lowering the top rate from the present 35 percent to 25 percent, increasing the tax burden on middle class Americans.
Under Romney/Ryan, Medicare would be turned into a voucher program where benefits would be determined by an insurance company. Traditionally, the health care needs of senior citizens are generously covered by the U.S. government. Under Ryan’s plan, that care would be determined by private insurance companies. Vouchers for a fixed amount would be issued, forcing seniors to make do.
The CBO estimates most seniors would pay an average of $6,400 in additional medical costs under Ryan’s plan.
As for Medicaid, which covers low-income people and increasingly nursing home care for formerly middle-class Americans, the federal government would issue block grants to states — and at a significantly reduced rate than it currently pays for those services.
Ryan also favors privatization of Social Security, stealing the last leg under the stool of federal entitlements which Americans have earned.
Ryan’s plan is for the hale, hearty and well-heeled.
Those less than that, will feel increasingly unwelcome.
— Susan Lynn
