Their Mothers Must Be So Proud

Good catch by Matt Singer on Conrad Burns' great accomplishment:

Health care: Burns said far more Americans are covered by health insurance or a government health-care plan than in the 1960s.

“Percentagewise, we're getting better,” he said. “More people have more coverage today, I think. The problem is how do we pull back on the yearly increase in costs?”

So Burns is not only praising, but taking credit for, Medicare, Medicaid, and SCHIP. Who knew he was such a fan of massive government intervention in the health sector? And that's what I love about Republicans. If Clinton's health plan had been enacted, you'd have Burns and a host of others happily chirping about how many more Americans have comprehensive coverage than a decade ago. Reminds me of this:

Like many of its predecessors, the Bush White House has used the machinery of government to promote the re-election of the president by awarding federal grants to strategically important states. But in a twist this election season, many administration officials are taking credit for spreading largess through programs that President Bush tried to eliminate or to cut sharply.

For example, Justice Department officials recently announced that they were awarding $47 million to scores of local law enforcement agencies for the hiring of police officers. Mr. Bush had just proposed cutting the budget for the program, known as Community Oriented Policing Services, by 87 percent, to $97 million next year, from $756 million.

The administration has been particularly energetic in publicizing health programs, even ones that had been scheduled for cuts or elimination.

Tommy G. Thompson, the secretary of health and human services, announced recently that the administration was awarding $11.7 million in grants to help 30 states plan and provide coverage for people without health insurance. Mr. Bush had proposed ending the program in each of the last three years.

The administration also announced recently that it was providing $11.6 million to the states so they could buy defibrillators to save the lives of heart attack victims. But Mr. Bush had proposed cutting the budget for such devices by 82 percent, to $2 million from $10.9 million.

And these guys, remember, are the Party of Ideas, the coalition that can tell you what they stand for in three syllables or less, and the much-vaunted slayers of flip-floppers. And yet, when asked to name what they're proud of, they invoke the Great Society and a host of programs they tried to kill.