Republicans, emboldened by a new letter from the Congressional Budget Office, accused Democrats on Wednesday of "Bernie Madoff accounting" for double counting the savings from Medicare as a means to pay for the Senate health care bill.
As the Senate prepares for a crucial vote before final passage of a massive overhaul bill that Democrats argue will reduce the deficit by $132 billion over 10 years, Sen. Jeff Sesssions, R-Ala, said the nearly $500 billion in cuts to Medicare actually will add $300 billion to the deficit
"The real score on this legislation is that it would cause the deficit to increase, and not be a surplus as the president has promised," Sessions told Fox News. "And a lot members of our Congress have said I won't vote for this bill unless it's deficit neutral. It's not deficit neutral. It will add to the debt. That's clear today."
Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H., added, "This is Bernie Madoff accounting and it's an outrage."
The senators also spoke at a news conference just hours before the Senate was to take up a procedural vote before a final passage vote Thursday.
"I think it's a potential game changer," Sessions said.
"The seniors have been had and our kids our gonna get the bill," Gregg said. "We're talking here about double-counting, spending the same money twice in order to create a massive new entitlement that has nothing to do with seniors."
A spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid claimed the CBO letter dealt explicitly with Medicare, not the overall short and long term budgetary impact of the legislation. But the spokesman did not address the accusation of double counting. - FOX News Story
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