Elizabeth Warren’s fortunes in the Democratic primary race have been headed in the wrong direction for over a month now. In what seems to be an unannounced strategy to revive her moribund campaign, Warren has largely abandoned speaking about the policy proposal central to her rise to the top tier: “Medicare for All.”
DES MOINES — In warm-up remarks introducing Senator Elizabeth Warren at campaign rallies, young volunteers often say they are supporting her because of her plan to transform the health care system through a single-payer “Medicare for all” program. It happened in Des Moines on Saturday and Oklahoma City last week, and in western Iowa cities like Clarinda and Council Bluffs on Sunday.
But Ms. Warren herself is barely speaking of the proposal. After months of attacks from other candidates, and questions and some blowback from both liberals and moderates, the most ambitious and expensive of Ms. Warren’s many plans — and the one most likely to transform the lives of voters — is just a passing mention in her standard stump speech, rarely explored in depth unless a questioner brings it up.
Warren’s health care boondoggle is problematic, to be sure. She didn’t really get into specifics about how she would pay for it all during her ascent in the polls. When she did finally yield to pressure to provide specifics, all she had to offer was the boilerplate progressive “tax the rich” nonsense. That math never works out the way the progs want it to, however.
For the most part, Warren was getting a free pass from the media on “Medicare for All” until she emerged as a legitimate threat to Joe Biden. At that point, even the MSM and other Democrats began questioning the soundness of her signature policy.
The old phrase, “Dance with the one that brung ya” comes to mind here. It was “Medicare for All” that propelled Warren into the Top 3, and she soon had to abandon it. That doesn’t make a very compelling case for her to become the nominee.
Warren’s “Medicare for All” is a socialist shift that makes Obamacare look positively libertarian. It would be an understatement to say that she may have overreached with this one. The public didn’t like what she was selling, so she’s now pretending that she isn’t really selling it.
Good luck with that.
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PJ Media Associate Editor Stephen Kruiser is the author of “Don’t Let the Hippies Shower” and “Straight Outta Feelings: Political Zen in the Age of Outrage,” both of which address serious subjects in a humorous way. Monday through Friday he edits PJ Media’s “Morning Briefing.”
