U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords released a new TV ad this week, again targeting opponent Jesse Kelly for his stances on Social Security and Medicare, while an independent group launched its own ad attacking Giffords’ vote on health care reform.
Giffords ad focuses on Kelly’s statements that Medicare recipients are “on the public dole” and Social Security and Medicare are “the biggest Ponzi scheme in history.”
Kelly said the ad doesn’t fully describe his plan for those already receiving those benefits.
“Giffords cut $500 billion from Medicare and Giffords eliminated Medicare Advantage and now she is lying about my plan to protect those relying on the system,” Kelly said in a statement.
Giffords’ Campaign Manager Rodd McLeod said the program has not been eliminated and Giffords’ vote for health care reform was not a vote to eliminate the program.
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The AARP website quotes Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius saying misinformation gave people the impression the program was being eliminated.
While the program will still exist, Medicare’s chief actuary, Richard Foster, said in a recent report the health care reform cuts in federal funding for private Medicare Advantage mean enrollment in the program will drop by an estimated 50 percent.
The changes will gradually reduce how much Medicare pays for services, increasing the cost to Medicare Advantage enrollees, discouraging participation.
The independent group 60 Plus Association is airing the anti-Giffords spot, which says her health care reform vote will hurt the quality of seniors’ care and threaten their ability to keep their doctor, thus negatively affect their quality of life. The association calls itself “the conservative alternative to the liberal AARP.”
Giffords’ campaign said the group is funded by “pharmaceutical giants,” and has lobbied against prescription affordability.
“The Wall Street interests that want to privatize Social Security are spending even more money to support Jesse Kelly and his call to ‘privatize it,’” said Giffords’ Campaign Manager Rodd McLeod in a statement. “If Kelly really wants to protect Southern Arizona seniors, he should admit that he was wrong when he called for privatizing and eliminating Social Security.”
This is Giffords’ newest television ad about Kelly:
And this is the 60 Plus Association’s television ad about Giffords:
