"Calling ‘Em Out"

The DNC has a new web video today focusing on a few of Michael Steele's more preposterous claims about the health care debate.

I still find it incredible that Steele would say that he hasn't tried to "scare people with sound bites," and he doesn't know any GOP leaders in the House or Senate that have done that.

From the accompanying email blasted out this morning:

Last weekend, Republican Rep. Dana Rohrabacher admitted what’s been painfully clear for months, saying: “I see a lot of Republicans simply involved in political games.” Sadly, he’s right — and when it comes to health reform, there’s no one that statement applies to more. than Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele. Instead of encouraging his party to work toward reform, Steele’s been leading the charge against it with a series of lies and distortions.

He’s claimed reform would hurt small businesses, cost millions of Americans their insurance, and cut Medicare — and independent observers have declared each of those claims false. Steele knows that all Americans — Republicans and Democrats alike — are dealing with the painful consequences of a broken health care system. But he’s siding with Washington elites and insurance companies and playing political games to kill reform — so we’re calling him out...

Even though everyone from Sanjay Gupta to AARP and the independent PolitiFact say that claims that reform would cut Medicare benefits or result in rationing are false, Steele’s been spreading them for months. And what does the Congressional Budget Office — the independent arm of Congress that evaluates bills — think about Steele’s claims that reform would increase the deficit and force Americans from their current coverage? CBO analyses refute the RNC chairman’s claims on both counts.

h/t The Plum Line