Senator Elizabeth Warren has said more than once she’s “with Bernie” on Medicare for All, a reference to Sen. Bernie Sanders’s ambitious plan to nationalize America’s health care system.
Unlike Sanders, however, Warren is refusing to say how she’ll pay for it. Last week during ABC’s presidential debate, she dodged a question from George Stephanopoulos, who asked her if she’d raise taxes on the middle class to finance her single-payer proposal.
This was not the first time Warren, who has not released a health care plan of her own, has sidestepped the question. The Atlantic noted this was “the fourth time in three presidential debates” that Warren employed “the artful dodge,” a refusal to answer a direct question.
Perhaps this is good politics. Voters like the idea of “free” benefits; they are less enthusiastic about paying for things, which is why presidential candidates (almost) never campaign on tax increases.
Nevertheless, Americans deserve to know how much Medicare for All will cost and how candidates intend to pay for it.
Unlike Sanders, however, Warren is refusing to say how she’ll pay for it. Last week during ABC’s presidential debate, she dodged a question from George Stephanopoulos, who asked her if she’d raise taxes on the middle class to finance her single-payer proposal.
This was not the first time Warren, who has not released a health care plan of her own, has sidestepped the question. The Atlantic noted this was “the fourth time in three presidential debates” that Warren employed “the artful dodge,” a refusal to answer a direct question.
Perhaps this is good politics. Voters like the idea of “free” benefits; they are less enthusiastic about paying for things, which is why presidential candidates (almost) never campaign on tax increases.
Nevertheless, Americans deserve to know how much Medicare for All will cost and how candidates intend to pay for it.
Elizabeth Warren by Marc Nozell is licensed under Flickr Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.
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