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This past weekend before the annual Morrison-Exon celebration, Senator Ben Nelson told a group of young Democrats that his opponents want to “dismantle” Medicare.  This line of attack by Senator Nelson is ironic because when he provided Harry Reid with the 60th and final vote for ObamaCare it made him the only candidate who has voted to cut Medicare.

If you are reporting on Nelson’s recent comments regarding Medicare, below is a statement and some research from the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC):

“Senator Ben Nelson’s rhetoric on Medicare is not only ironic, but misleading because when he delivered the 60th and final vote on ObamaCare, Nelson didn’t just vote to raise taxes and increase costs for Nebraska small businesses, he also voted to cut Medicare by $500 billion. Rather than trying to distract Nebraskans from his failed record, Nelson needs to explain to them why he’s the only candidate who has voted to slash Medicare.”  Jahan Wilcox, NRSC Spokesman

Nelson Voted To Pass The Senate Version Of The $2.5 Trillion Obama-Reid Health Care Bill. (H.R. 3590, CQ Vote #396: Passed 60-39: R 0-39; D 58-0; I 2-0, 12/24/09, Nelson Voted Yea)

The Democrats 2010 Health Care Bill Made Cuts To Medicare And Medicare Advantage

• The Health Care Bill Cut Medicare By Roughly “$500 Billion Over The Next Decade.” “To cover the cost of those changes, the compromise would impose a 3.8 percent Medicare tax on investment income for wealthy taxpayers, a levy that would come in addition to a Senate-proposed increase in the regular payroll tax for those families. And it would slice an additional $60 billion from Medicare, with the privately run program known as Medicare Advantage targeted for particularly deep cuts, bringing the total reduction in projected spending on the program to more than $500 billion over the next decade.” (Lori Montgomery and Paul Kane, “House Leaders Announce $940 Billion Health-Care Compromise Bill,” The Washington Post, 3/19/10)
• A Report By The Chief Medicare Actuary Said That Medicare Advantage Programs Will Be Cut By Roughly 50 Percent In The Health Care Bill. “The study, by the chief Medicare actuary, Richard S. Foster, provides a detailed, rigorous analysis of the law. . . . In his report, Mr. Foster made these points: . . . Cuts in federal payments to private Medicare Advantage plans will ‘result in less generous benefit packages,’ the report said. By 2017, it said, ‘enrollment in Medicare Advantage plans will be lower by about 50 percent, from its projected level of 14.8 million under the prior law to 7.4 million under the new law.’” (Robert Pear, “Health Care Cost Increase Is Projected For New Law,” The New York Times, 4/23/10)