document: GOP Launching Multi-Pronged Attack On Senior Citizens This one truly has me scratching my head . In the 2010 mid-term elections , the GOP successfully garnered the vote of the nation 's seniors by a 21 % margin . Not bad , considering that this demographic is one of the most reliable groups of voters in any national , state or local election . While the elderly have gravitated to the Republican Party for some time now , the fear the GOP has been sewing within this community over the Medicare cuts coming from Obamacare was all it really took to deliver these very healthy voter margins around the country -- never mind that the Republicans achieved this success by mischaracterizing the Medicare cuts at every opportunity in the effort to frighten the nation 's seniors . Yet , for reasons that boggle the rational mind , seniors have now become a target of both the GOP budgeting process and the House Ways And Means Committee . First , the budget . It is no great surprise that House GOP budget maven , Rep. Paul Ryan -LRB- R-Wisconsin -RRB- , is expected to announce the GOP plan to cut $ 1 trillion in Medicaid over the next ten years . While these cuts will bring devastating consequences to the nation 's poor and disabled , protecting the needs of the poor has never been a priority with the GOP . What does surprise is that Ryan has indicated that he intends to additionally propose some large cuts in Medicare - although he is being somewhat cagey about letting on just how large those cuts will be . While the expectation is that Ryan will suggest a voucher system whereby seniors will be given government checks to use in purchasing their medical care - checks that remain static or rise via cost of living adjustments despite the fact that medical costs tend to increase at a rate well in excess of the cost of living - we 'll all have to wait and see as the Congressman is not giving away many details . Of course , who can blame Ryan for being vague on the Medicare cut numbers as the nation 's senior citizens - and the AARP - are not likely to take the news very well . Still , knowing what is coming , it seems reasonable to wonder what is to become of our senior citizens when these voucher checks no longer cover the costs of serious illness . As noted , opponents of health care reform never miss an opportunity to remind our seniors that the ACA legislated away some $ 500 billion in Medicare money . However , these cuts were largely the result of ending the 11 % premium the government has been paying to Medicare Advantage programs for the identical services provided to Medicare beneficiaries when paid for directly from the government program . This premium charge was not an accident . When the Medicare Advantage program was created -- in the effort to move the administration of Medicare to the private sector -- the insurance companies asked the government to subsidize their efforts until they could get their respective programs up on their feet . They also promised that they would have these programs running efficiently by 2010 when the subsidy was scheduled to come to an end . Thus , the largest chunk of cuts in the Medicare budget resulting from the ACA comes from ending the corporate subsidy that was already scheduled to end in 2010 . As a result , none of these cuts legislated in the ACA mean any loss of important medical care to our elderly . How the Republicans ' plan to cut further into Medicare without obliterating essential health care benefits should be an interesting exercise and one that could send seniors running back to the Democratic Party in droves - and the Republicans know it . Which is why the GOP has chosen this moment to seek to discredit the AARP , the primary lobby for the nation 's elderly . This week , when the Ways and Means Committee released its report , '' `` Behind the Veil : The AARP America Does n't Know , '' '' Oversight Subcommittee Chairman Charles Boustany -LRB- R-La . -RRB- suggested that the senior citizen lobby 's commercial activities interfere with its tax-exempt status , and he called for an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service to determine whether the group 's '' `` privileged status ought to be revoked . '' '' Via Politico The report pulls no punches when arguing that AARP is a primary beneficiary of Obamacare in that the end of Medicare Advantage programs -LRB- and the overcharges to the taxpayers that comes with them -RRB- will result in an increase in the supplemental Medicare policies that AARP endorses . Republicans argue that AARP supported a provision in the overhaul that cut $ 200 billion from the Medicare Advantage program because the group will benefit when seniors replace their coverage with supplemental Medicare policies -- known as `` Medigap '' policies -- that the group endorses . Via California Healthline Sour grapes , anybody ? So intent is the GOP in punishing AARP for its support of health care reform that they now seek to pull the organization 's tax-exempt status as payback -- virtually guaranteeing some nasty blowback from the key , senior voting demographic . If this is n't a messaging opportunity that even Democrats ca n't screw up , I do n't know what is . Welcome back , senior citizens of America ! It was only a matter of time until those who have pretended to care about your well being managed to reveal themselves and show you who really has your back .
extractive_keyphrases: benefit government punches suggest indicated surprise gop launching multipronged attack cost of living suggested reasonable replace senior citizens policies priority gravitated republican private sector scheduled efforts released devastating community insurance companies budgeting process sewing expected boggle california activities support subsidy managed beneficiaries medicare respective messaging opportunity congressman obliterating essential reveal primary directly successfully garnered identical scratching administration democratic party discredit achieved illness subcommittee opportunity republicans legislated aarp promised screw citizen aca elderly cover gop overcharges rwisconsin ways medigap protecting purchasing demographic revoked
abstractive_keyphrases: supplemental medicare policies organization's democratic multipronged citizens