Cochran Does More Than Say He’s Against Obamacare
The narrator in the Tea Party Patriots ad also calls into question Cochran’s bona fides in opposing the Affordable Care Act. “He says he opposes Obamacare, but he accepts a special exemption for himself and his staff,” the narrator states.
We’ll start by noting that Cochran does more than “say” he opposes the Affordable Care Act. He voted against it.
Cochran also voted in March 2013 for an amendment from Sen. Ted Cruz “to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to provide for the repeal of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 and to encourage patient-centered reform.” It failed 45-54.
And in February 2011, Cochran voted for an amendment from Sen. Mitch McConnell to a transportation bill that sought “to repeal the job-killing health care law and health care-related provisions in the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010.” It failed 47-51.
Cochran also has voted in favor of defunding the ACA, such as his vote on March 13, 2013, in favor of an amendment offered by Cruz “to prohibit the use of funds to carry out the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.” It failed 45-52.
Cochran was also a co-sponsor of the self-explanatory ObamaCare Repeal Act, which was introduced in January 2013.
We could go on, but you get the idea. Cochran has done more than “say” he’s against the Affordable Care Act. He voted against it, and has voted to repeal and defund it.
As for the claim that Cochran “accept[ed] a special exemption [from the ACA] for himself and his staff,” we’ve dispelled that canard on numerous occasions. Cochran and his staff went into the D.C. exchange created by the Affordable Care Act. The federal government continues to pick up 72 percent of federal employees’ premiums on average — just as it did before the ACA. But that’s not a “special exemption.” Most large employers pay a portion of health care costs.
FactCheck.org
5/24/14
Magnolia Tribune
