Paul Ryan brought a secret weapon with him Saturday as he defended his lightning-rod Medicare plan at the nation?s largest senior citizens community - his mother.
Ryan made his case in the crucial battleground of Florida, where many pundits feel his addition to the Republican ticket may hurt Mitt Romney?s chances of carrying the Sunshine State.
But Ryan - cheered on by a Republican-leaning crowd at The Villages - trotted out his mother Betty as the best reason for adopting his plan, which dramatically alters Medicare.
"Medicare was there for our family, for my grandma when we needed it now, and Medicare is there for my mom when she needs it now," Ryan said.
?It?s not just a program, it?s not just a bunch of numbers, it?s what my mom relies on," the Wisconsin congressman said.
The transformation of Medicare is the most controversial component of Ryan?s spending-slashing budget plan.
It would replace the current system with vouchers, which critics believe will drive up the cost of health care - and leave some seniors without the coverage they need.
Realizing they could be vulnerable to Democratic attacks on Medicare, the Republicans have instead tried to strike first on the hot-button issue.
Betty Ryan, who spends winters in Florida, smiled broadly as her son blamed the new federal healthcare law for jeopardizing the future of Medicare.
?Medicare should not be used as a piggybank for Obamacare,? said Ryan, sounding a new GOP talking point that claims the President?s signature legislative accomplishment was in part funded by $716 billion borrowed from Medicare.
The Democrats have pushed back on that accusation, saying that the savings produced by Obamacare will not only repay Medicare but fund it well into the future.
Ryan only heard cheers from the thousands of senior citizens who gathered in the central Florida morning sun to listen to him speak - thanks to a well-chosen location.
The Villages, which is home to more than 60,000 seniors, is owned by Gary Morse, a major Romney donor, and Republican residents outnumber Democrats by more than two-to-one.
Moreover, the private community banned protests at the Ryan event - though a plane did fly overhead carrying a banner that read ?Paul Ryan keep your hands off our Medicare.?
Meanwhile, Romney was slated for a day of fundraising at some of his home state?s toniest locations.
The ex-Massachusetts governor, after raising money in the Hamptons on Friday, was set to buck rake on Martha?s Vineyard, Nantucket and Cape Cod.
Romney?s own wealth was expected to draw fire from President Obama, who will also be in New England on Saturday.
Obama, set to appear at a pair of rallies in the swing state of New Hampshire, was ready to slam the Republican ticket?s fiscal proposals.
?The centerpiece of my opponent's entire economic plan is a new $5 trillion tax cut, a lot of it going to the wealthiest Americans,? Obama was to say, according to excerpts released by his campaign.
?And his new running mate, Congressman Ryan,? Obama said, ?put forward a plan that would let Governor Romney pay less than 1% in taxes each year.?
Romney claimed this week that he paid at least 13% in taxes every year. Documents released by Ryan Friday night reveal that he paid taxes at an effective rate of 20% in 2011.
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/nydnrss/news/~3/ikYTitcWyf4/story01.htm
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