During the floor debate on the Affordable Care Act (which Republicans affectionately refer to as "Obamacare") in March 2010, then Republican minority leader, Rep. John Boehner, described the Democrats' reforms thusly
...today we’re standing here looking at a health care bill that no one in this body believes is satisfactory.In January of this year, Republicans made the repeal of the ACA their first substantive (though ultimately unsuccessful) piece of legislation.
...Can you go home and tell your senior citizens that these cuts in Medicare will not limit their access to doctors or further weaken the program instead of strengthening it? No, you cannot.
...Shame on us. Shame on this body. Shame on each and every one of you who substitutes your will and your desires above those of your fellow countrymen.
Yesterday, however, Speaker Boehner was singing a different tune. When asked about the Republicans' plans to cut and privatize Medicare, Speaker Boehner said
It transforms Medicare into a plan that's very similar to the President's own healthcare bill.He went on to praise the proposed program's efficiency and to state several times that he supported it.
So a short time ago, the President's proposals were shameful and unsatisfactory, but now, changes that are "very similar to the President's own healthcare bill" are laudable.
