Who could forget Jonathan Gruber, the MIT economics professor (read: ivory tower) turned Obamacare architect who got in some hot water for getting caught on-camera basically calling the American people too stupid to understand what was about to be imposed on them.
From BizPac Review
Apparently a glutton for punishment, Gruber appeared on Fox Business with Maria Bartiromo to defend the law he helped create. He doubtless knew he’d get some hard questions, but nobody, and I mean nobody, could have prepared him for the butt-whooping he was about to receive.
What it looks like when a knowledgable and prepared interviewer burrows in. https://t.co/tXLokX2aDZ
— Peggy Noonan (@Peggynoonannyc) November 15, 2016
Faced with the question of affordability and rising insurance costs, Gruber had the gall to insist that the current cost of employer insurance is actually $3,100 per year “lower than projected” and that Obamacare “has actually saved people money.”
So, why the average 25 percent increases? Gruber insists that premiums were 20 percent lower than where they should have been before the law, so they are now just “catching up.”
Bartiromo was having none of it.
“It’s very hard to make the case that you’re making knowing what the reality is, and the reality is that families cannot afford Obamacare, and the reality is that premiums for families across the country have skyrocketed and even if you’re in a plan with a company … companies aren’t hiring more workers because they are being forced to provide healthcare … these are what families and business are saying.”
Staying point after Gruber tried to deflect the question, Bartiromo pressed, “What is wrong with what I just said?”
“Premiums have gone down for employers,” Gruber said, apparently referring to an alternate reality.
“Business is not hiring workers because the legislation is too expensive … how do you make this legislation less expensive?” Bartiromo asked.
“There is no evidence at all that Obamacare has anything at all to do with economic growth,” said Gruber.
Nevermind the evidence of CEOs and business people across the nation.
In a seminal moment, Bartiromo proceeded to play the infamous tape of Gruber where he was caught saying, “Lack of transparency is a huge political advantage, and basically call it the stupidity of the American voter or whatever, but basically that was really critical to get the thing to pass.”
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