It’s been a few weeks since The New York Times reported on the “absence” of health care as a “top issue” in this year’s election cycle. “In nearly every major presidential race for decades, health care has been a central issue,” the Times’ report added, concluding that health care has become “a second-tier issue.”
Vice President Kamala Harris appears determined to drag health care into the first tier, whether Republicans like it or not. NBC News reported:
Kamala Harris is launching a seven-figure ad blitz about health care targeting Donald Trump’s calls to replace the Affordable Care Act with a mystery plan he hasn’t yet released. The ad campaign, first reported by NBC News, is aimed at elevating the issue and capitalizing on what polling says is a weakness for Trump.”
The minute-long commercial is built in part on the former president declaring at the recent presidential debate that he has “concepts of a plan” that would replace the nation’s existing health care system.
The unveiling of the ad comes one day after the Democratic presidential campaign released a 43-page report on what Americans could expect from a second Trump term, specifically on health care policy, based on his record, his recent vows and the work members of his team have done on the Project 2025 agenda.
Team Harris made the case that if the Republican nominee won’t release a health care plan, Democrats would take the liberty of filling in the gaps, effectively presenting Trump’s plan for him.
This week’s push comes on the heels of a series of related efforts, including Team Harris organizing dozens of public events with health care advocates in key states, shining a light on the GOP’s regressive vision.
Fortunately for the Democratic ticket and its allies, their Republican counterparts have helped to elevate the issue in unexpected ways. It was, after all, just two weeks ago when Trump’s controversial running mate, Republican Sen. JD Vance of Ohio, shared new details about his plans to weaken protections for Americans with pre-existing conditions — creating a new opportunity for Democrats in the process.
His running mate has helped, too: Over the last several months, the former president has repeatedly targeted “Obamacare” in increasingly explicit terms, and as recently as December, the Republican nominee posted a video to his social media platform attacking the late Sen. John McCain for not helping him “terminate” the ACA in 2017.
I’m mindful of the broader election season conversation and the degree to which health care has not enjoyed the national spotlight, at least not on par with the economy and border security. But with 35 days remaining in the cycle, there’s no reason the conversation can’t change. In a new press statement, the Harris campaign pointed to the latest national Gallup poll, which found two-thirds of Americans said health care needed to be discussed more as part of this year’s elections. Surprisingly, the results weren’t altogether partisan: A majority of Democrats, Republicans and independent voters all agreed that health care hasn’t gotten enough attention. With this in mind, Democrats appear eager to give the electorate what it apparently wants, focusing on an issue on which Republicans struggle badly. This post updates our related earlier coverage.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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