Along the campaign trail, now President-elect Donald Trump boasted to many American voters that he wouldn't cut Social Security or Medicare. His actions are now speaking louder than his words and Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont is right there to call his bluff.
In a statement made by Sanders on his website, Tuesday following the pick of Rep.Tom Price, for secretary of Health and Human Services, Sanders unloaded on the President-elect.
“Donald Trump asked workers and seniors to vote for him because he was the only Republican candidate who would not cut Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid – programs that are of life-and-death importance for millions of Americans”, Sanders said. “Now, he has nominated a person for secretary of Health and Human Services, Rep. Tom Price, who has a long history of wanting to do exactly the opposite of what Trump campaigned on. Rep. Price has a long history of wanting to cut Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. What hypocrisy! Mr. Trump needs to tell the American people that what he said during the campaign were just lies, or else appoint an HHS secretary who will protect these programs and do what Trump said he would do.”
These comments should come as no surprise. Sanders has been an outspoken critic of Trump going back to his own candidacy before losing to Hillary Clinton in the Democratic primaries. The difference between then and now is Sanders was hopeful that Trump would uphold some of his policy promises that now that he has won the election have fallen to the wayside.
The Empowering Patients First Act is the legislation Rep. Price has been supporting as an alternative to repeal the Affordable Care Act. Senator Chuck Schumer of New York had some concerns about Price’s legislation.
”Congressman Price has proven to be far out of the mainstream of what Americans want when it comes to Medicare, the Affordable Care Act, and Planned Parenthood. Schumer said to the NY Times, “Thanks to those three programs, millions of American seniors, families, people with disabilities and women have access to quality, affordable health care. Nominating Congressman Price to be the H.H.S. secretary is akin to asking the fox to guard the henhouse.”