Bad news is that every single Democrat can say no and it will still pass with huge margins with GOP in the House. In the Senate it will be close.
For interests sake I visited aarp.org to see what they had up about changes to Medicare and it is basically nothing other than a several days old article about working with the incoming administration that was probably copy and pasted from the last change of administration. If aarp doesn’t wake up they are going to wind up with a bunch of pissed off seniors that won’t want to renew their memberships.
Nancy.
Smash.
This is a fight Dems need to have, and need to win.
There’s a story on today’s NY Times about people who were okay with not voting this past election, and the quote that stuck with me is “They (politicians) never do anything for us anyway.”
This is something we have to do for us.
This is something we have to hang around the GOP’s neck for the midterms.
This is where we have to get folks on the ground, in those barbershops and neighborhoods, in those Rust Belt states, and say “This is what Democrats do for you.”
(Sorry - we as Dems need to get fired up over what we stand for - this couldn’t be a clearer example of that.)
Get your army out there and message the f$%# out of this in time for the holiday. This is your huge single issue everyone can understand and make drunk uncle Trump voter understand he just shot grandma.
I told this story elsewhere, but I was at the ophthalmologist’s office last week and most of his patients are older, like me, and I was settling up with his staff and we already had all established that we were all equally pissed off and disturbed about the election, so I pulled out my brand shiny new Medicare card and said - let’s use this as long as we can, since Paul Ryan has already said - 2017, Medicare is out of here. The glass window between where we were and the waiting room was open. You should have seen the heads shoot up from their reading material and look wildly in my direction like a herd of gnu who have just heard something roar.
Paul Ryan and his grifter GOP confederates are overplaying their hands. Any public attempt to destroy Medicare & Social Security would’ blow up in their faces, since a strong majority of all Americans – including the Donald’s voters – oppose gutting these essential programs.
That’s up to us. In 2005, Dems were demoralized, and many were making noises about working with W on “reform” when constituents of both Ds and Rs started calling and demanding to know that they stood against any attempt to mess with SS. (For those who don’t know, Josh Marshall was an early instigator of that effort, in just the way he’s pushing on Medicare now.) Pretty soon, the Dems were a loud, united, victorious front – from the minority.
I remember an article tracing the Dems’ success that contained an anecdote about a wobbly rep asking Pelosi when Dems would introduce their own “reform” plan, to which she replied, “Never. Is never good for you?” They can do it again, if they stand as strong, loud and proud in defense of this other beloved program. And they will – if they feel the pressure from us and everyone we can enlist in the effort. Josh’s blueprint for the SS battle was “proof of concept” for this one.
God no shit = we were all demoralized. That’s why I have to hand it to the Democrats who peeled everyone up off the floor and made them get to work because in the following midterms we turned Dallas Co out and turned it blue.
That is one thing that will always bring out the mid term voters = outrage over the other side being in power.
So I just keep my fingers crossed that there is a chance for midterm elections in 2018. 
They have skin in the game. The AARP is more of a business they sell so many products to the seniors. At one time they may have had the seniors interests in mind, not so much now.
I emailed AARP a few days back, and got a generic “thanks for writing” reply, along with a case number.
I’m thinking of writing back to escalate.
Bout TIME a democrat spoke up.
I live in Arizona so you know I am in the desert in more ways than one, but I have been calling my senators and my representative daily since Paul Ryan announced his plan the day after the election. You have to call to let them know you really care - internet petitions won’t do it. Gotta start making noise now!
I contacted them last week and received a reply that I sent on to TPM, but have heard nothing about it from them. Here is my report, followed by the AARP email:
In addition to contacting legislators, I also wrote to AARP, inquiring about why they aren’t warning members of danger to Medicare. Their answer was not as unwavering as I had hoped.
-
Although they initially vow “to oppose any attempts to cut your Medicare benefits,” their first “belief” is that
Medicare should be strengthened and improved so both current and future generations can count on having access to high quality, affordable coverage.
I have difficulty finding much daylight between this statement and Ryan’s statement of his intent to “strengthen” the system. -
Equally, their belief that
Medicare should offer choices that ensure access to high quality health care
could just as easily apply to a voucher system for choosing between private insurance plans. -
Even their belief that
Medicare should continue to guarantee a specific set of benefits that are affordable and meet a person’s health care needs
isn’t a direct endorsement of Medicare as it is, since “a specific set of benefits” could be standards specified legislatively for plans eligible for purchase by voucher. -
Finally, their statement about Medicare does not approach the absolute defense of SS they specify in their last three bulleted “beliefs.”
To my eye, they are playing word games in their “support” for Medicare.
Ron Troxel
Dear Mr. Troxel,
Thank you for contacting AARP regarding recent discussions about privatizing Medicare and Social Security.
Be assured that AARP will continue to oppose any attempts to cut your Medicare benefits. Medicare is a sacred promise to all Americans, and we will continue to fight to strengthen and improve Medicare by cracking down on drug companies’ high prices, improving patient care and eliminating waste, fraud and abuse.
As well, AARP will always oppose Social Security privatization. Americans have paid into Social Security over their working lives, and they deserve to receive the guaranteed lifetime benefits they’ve earned.
Specifically, AARP believes:
Medicare should be strengthened and improved so both current and future generations can count on having access to high quality, affordable coverage.
Medicare should continue to guarantee a specific set of benefits that are affordable and meet a person’s health care needs.
Medicare should offer choices that ensure access to high quality health care.
Medicare should improve the quality, safety and efficiency of care by:emphasizing value and cracking down on fraud, waste and abuse.
AARP will beat back any attempts to privatize Social Security for current and future seniors.
AARP has and will always oppose Social Security privatization.
Americans have paid into Social Security over their working lives. They deserve to receive the guaranteed lifetime benefits they’ve earned.
If you are interested in detailed information related to how AARP advocates for Caregivers, and keeping Medicare, and Social Security strong go to:
www.aarp.org and search: “Let’s Get To Work”
Thank you, again, for contacting AARP about these very important issues.
When shrub said he had a mandate and toyed with the idea of privatizing SS when they last controlled all 3 branches, the voters handed both the Senate and House to the Democrats. They followed that two years later electing Obama.
I contacted AARP last week and received a reply that I sent on to TPM, but have heard nothing about it from them. Here is my report, followed by the AARP email:
In addition to contacting legislators, I also wrote to AARP, inquiring about why they aren’t warning members of danger to Medicare. Their answer was not as unwavering as I had hoped.
Although they initially vow “to oppose any attempts to cut your Medicare benefits,” their first “belief” is that
Medicare should be strengthened and improved so both current and future generations can count on having access to high quality, affordable coverage.
I have difficulty finding much daylight between this statement and Ryan’s statement of his intent to “strengthen” the system.
Equally, their belief that
Medicare should offer choices that ensure access to high quality health care
could just as easily apply to a voucher system for choosing between private insurance plans.
Even their belief that
Medicare should continue to guarantee a specific set of benefits that are affordable and meet a person’s health care needs
isn’t a direct endorsement of Medicare as it is, since “a specific set of benefits” could be standards specified legislatively for plans eligible for purchase by voucher.
Finally, their statement about Medicare does not approach the absolute defense of SS they specify in their last three bulleted “beliefs.”
To my eye, they are playing word games in their “support” for Medicare.
Ron Troxel
Dear Mr. Troxel,
Thank you for contacting AARP regarding recent discussions about privatizing Medicare and Social Security.
Be assured that AARP will continue to oppose any attempts to cut your Medicare benefits. Medicare is a sacred promise to all Americans, and we will continue to fight to strengthen and improve Medicare by cracking down on drug companies’ high prices, improving patient care and eliminating waste, fraud and abuse.
As well, AARP will always oppose Social Security privatization. Americans have paid into Social Security over their working lives, and they deserve to receive the guaranteed lifetime benefits they’ve earned.
Specifically, AARP believes:
Medicare should be strengthened and improved so both current and future generations can count on having access to high quality, affordable coverage.
Medicare should continue to guarantee a specific set of benefits that are affordable and meet a person’s health care needs.
Medicare should offer choices that ensure access to high quality health care.
Medicare should improve the quality, safety and efficiency of care by:emphasizing value and cracking down on fraud, waste and abuse.
AARP will beat back any attempts to privatize Social Security for current and future seniors.
AARP has and will always oppose Social Security privatization.
Americans have paid into Social Security over their working lives. They deserve to receive the guaranteed lifetime benefits they’ve earned.
If you are interested in detailed information related to how AARP advocates for Caregivers, and keeping Medicare, and Social Security strong go to:
www.aarp.org and search: “Let’s Get To Work”
Thank you, again, for contacting AARP about these very important issues.
Exactly.
So if we can make it through two years and we have elections then I do think we’ll take it all back.
“Medicare
PrivatizationFragging.”
Exactly right. Get fired up, ready to go. With Voip those calls come 60 an hour. 
Co-sign.
THIS is our fight. Make noise. Lots of lots of noise.
I did the same, and got the same canned reply from AARP. I then re-replied to them to let them know how disturbed I was that they’re not using the word “privatization” in their defense of Medicare. I let them know that I consider Ryan’s plan for Medicare to be “privatization,” and I demanded that they oppose it as vigorously as they defend Social Security. The problem is that AARP is basically now an insurance company, and they’d benefit from a Medicare voucher system. We may have to look elsewhere for our champions.