Former Rep. John Delaney (D-Md.) came out of the gate swinging at Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) in the beginning of the second round of 2020 Democratic debates. Delaney has almost no chance at winning the Democratic primary, but he rightly denounced the pie-in-the-sky promises of Medicare For All.
“Folks, we have a choice. We can go down the road that Senator Sanders and Senator Warren want to take us, which is with bad policies like Medicare for All, free everything, and impossible promises that will turn off independent voters and get Trump re-elected,” Delaney began. “That’s what happened with McGovern, that’s what happened with Mondale, that’s what happened with Dukakis.”
Indeed, Sanders made the promise to give millions of illegal immigrants health care under Medicare for All.
Then, he made a pie-in-the-sky promise: “Or we can nominate someone with new ideas to create universal health care for every American with choice, someone who will unify our country and grow the economy and create jobs everywhere.”
In his opening statement, Democratic presidential candidate John Delaney calls out Sens. Sanders and Warren for promoting "bad policies like Medicare for All, free everything, and impossible promises that will turn off independent voters and get Trump reelected." #DemDebate pic.twitter.com/PABEbQYPDj
— The Lead CNN (@TheLeadCNN) July 31, 2019
Delaney’s plan may be more realistic than Sanders’, but it is unlikely to gain traction in the Democratic Party, and it’s still going in the direction of government-provided health care.
Yet Delaney rightly slammed Medicare for All many times.
He slammed his competitors for not having experience in health care, something he has.
"I'm the only one on the stage who actually has experience in the health care business and I don't think my colleagues on the stage understand the business." @JohnDelaney's purple tie is a strong choice. He's doing well on this… #DemDebate #PJMDrunkBlog
— Tyler O'Neil (@Tyler2ONeil) July 31, 2019
He went on to say that Medicare for All “by definition will lower quality in health care, because it says the rates will be the same as Medicare rates,” he argued. “If you start underpaying all the health care providers, you’re going to create a two-tiered system.”
When Sanders pushed back, Delaney responded, “His math is wrong. That’s all I’m saying.”
“I ask rural hospital administrators one question, if all of your bills were paid at the Medicare rate last year, what would happen? ‘We would close,'” the former congressman added.
Then Delaney struck gold: “I’m starting to think this isn’t about health care. This is an anti-private sector strategy.”
Amen to that!
Follow Tyler O’Neil, the author of this article, on Twitter at @Tyler2ONeil.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member