Medicare extremism, GOP Waterloo

If Democrat Kathy Hochul defeats Republican Jane Corwin in the New York House race today, it will be the dagger in the heart of the radical and extreme Republican attempt to destroy Medicare. Even if the race is close and Corwin wins, the Democrats win, because the race will show so much movement to Democrats that the numbers will prove the poison Medicare creates for Republicans, and the prospects for Democrats regaining control of the House and keeping control of the Senate.

The proposal originated by Republican Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, which is now the political religion of Republicans, is the worst policy idea and worst political blunder of the millennium. It is the Republican Waterloo.

Medicare is a wildly popular, widely revered and historically successful government program. The Republicans want to destroy Medicare, but their hatred of Medicare could well destroy the Republicans. The radical and extreme notion of totally destroying the Medicare program, replacing it with a windfall-profits subsidy for insurers and imposing punishing new costs on seniors, would be economically disastrous, morally repulsive and politically suicidal.

The president ordered the killing of Osama bin Laden. The voters will order the killing of the Republican attempt to destroy Medicare.