This week we discussed another videotape of Jonathan Gruber, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology economist who played a major role the ACA, or “Obamacare,” making revealing and highly embarrassing statements about the strategy behind the passage of the Act. Gruber had already previously attracted controversy with statements where he endorsed the theory at the heart of the recent decisions in Halbig and King by challengers to the ACA: to wit, that the federal funding provision was a quid pro quo device to reward states with their own exchanges and to punish those that force the creation of federal exchanges. That issue will now be decided by the United States Supreme Court. Gruber caused uproar when, after he had denounced the theory as “nutty” during the arguments in Halbig and King, he was shown later to have embraced that same interpretation. Gruber has become a major liability in the litigation. Gruber then was back in the news with an equally startling admission that the Obama Administration (and Gruber) succeeded in passing the ACA only by engineering a “lack of transparency” on the details and relying on “the stupidity of the American voter.” Now a new videotape has surfaced from Gruber speaking at the University of Rhode Island in 2012 and expressing the same contempt for the intelligence of citizens — suggesting again that they were hoodwinked to “the lack of economic understanding of the American voter.” Gruber was paid roughly $400,000 to help design the ACA by the Obama Administration, but he is proving far far more costly in its aftermath.
The latest comments came with discussion of the so-called “Cadillac tax” which mandated that insurance companies would be taxed under the Act. It was the idea of then Senator John Kerry, who Gruber describes as his “hero” in using the naiveté of voters against them. He explains that taxing individuals would have been “politically impossible” so Kerry and the Administration opted to tax the companies with full knowledge that the cost could be passed on to citizens:
“So basically it’s the same thing. We just tax the insurance companies, they pass on higher prices that offsets the tax break we get, it ends up being the same thing. It’s a very clever, you know, basic exploitation of the lack of economic understanding of the American voter.”
In another view taken from at an October 2013 event at Washington University in St. Louis, Gruber also refers to the “Cadillac tax,” and says “They proposed it and that passed, because the American people are too stupid to understand the difference.”
In fairness to Gruber, (putting aside his obvious low opinion of the American people) his frank discussions are consistent with speaking as an academic. However, such machinations are rarely confirmed by high-level consultants or officials. The ACA was pushed through by a muscle vote on a handful of votes while the Administration made claims that he later had to admit were misleading at best, such as the President’s repeated assurance that citizens could keep your current insurance policy if you liked it. There was a great deal of cynicism and misleading representations made during the ACA debates — reflecting a deep-seated contempt for the intelligence of the American voter. Gruber however seems to celebrate the success in using what he viewed as the stupidity of citizens, to quote his earlier comments, to secure passage of the ACA. It is the triumph of the ends over the means — the mantra of Beltway denizens who view more principled actors as naive chumps. What is shocking for many outside of the Beltway is of course the moral relativism and cynicism reflected in such comments, but Gruber is the norm in Washington. He is the face of the consequentiality morality that has long governed this city.
What is different is that he admits it.
The video below shows an honest and frankly insightful account of how the tax issues are addressed as well as the merits of such tax systems. It is the type of lecture that occurs on many campuses but the lecturer is rarely the architect of the underlying legislation. It is the combination with the earlier videotapes that has fueled the ongoing controversy, even though this is less confrontational. Actually, the far more significant statements were found in the first videotape where Gruber expressly endorses the theory of challengers in King and Halbig. Those statements are likely to be cited in the ongoing litigation and Gruber later effort to dismiss them as unintentional or off-the-cuff seemed less than honest.
The fact is that academics are often caught in a dilemma in moving between the political and academic worlds — worlds based on different values. Where the political world values opaqueness and evasion; the academic world values transparency and clarity. Gruber is a brilliant and highly distinguished academic and his lectures satisfy his obligation to be honest and accurate. That is precisely why his former associates in the Obama Administration may now find him less than ideal as a political ally.
Oooops. NVB=NBC.
Squeeky Fromm
Girl Reporter
Another important story is that the MSM is by and large ignoring this story. Mean old FOX NEWS is reporting on it, but who else??? Maybe one story on CBS Morning Show. Four Gruber videos now, and ABC and NVB are completely absent, and CBS had one whole story on it.
I wonder why??? I also wonder why certain insufferably boorish propaganda experts across the net haven’t done a story on this???
Squeeky Fromm
Girl Reporter
When are they going to repeal it? Is there no Bill in Congress now to repeal it? When the lame ducks cannot sit in Congress then new members come in. When? January? So have the Bill ready and on Day 1 vote it in. And, my Senate candidate named Thom Tillis vowed to repeal Medicare and Medicaid too. And maybe they will do away with Social Security. No one needs that either. My dad said this back in 1934 when that Roosevelt commie was elected.
Well you have to lie to yourself to be an Obama fan so it goes with the territory.
To be fair, many of them are simply as dishonest as Gruber, the nonperson.
At least Forrest Gump knew he was stupid.
These people are subgumps.
The fact that Democrats aren’t either embarrassed or outraged by this revelation, but instead doubling down, is strongly supportive of Gruber’s conclusion.
Gruber: “…because the American people are too stupid to understand the difference”
Which Americans voted for Obamacare?
Democrats.
Democrats are therefore the ones “too stupid to understand.”
Opponents to Obamacare, therefore, were not stupid.
It could not be more clear.
Most of us libruls are for universal healthcare.
I’m guessing that by “universal healthcare” you mean “nationalized healthcare”, which isn’t even close to the same thing.
Don’t think anyone here was an architect of the ACA which did experience a terrible rollout. Most of us libruls are for universal healthcare. Obamacare is just a start, hopefully.
President Obama’s remarks in Portland, Maine, April 1, 2010: The critics will “see that if Americans like their doctor, they will keep their doctor. And if you like your insurance plan, you will keep it. No one will be able to take that away from you. It hasn’t happened yet. It won’t happen in the future.”
Paul, I told you my husband is on Medicare. I am on retiree health insurance, but I am looking forward to medicare.His policy is much better than the retiree health care plan.
SWM – don’t be pushing Obamacare unless you are on it. You have no standing. You can ask your husband what that means.
There is nothing as destructive to the liberals argument then quoting their own lies back to them.
They have no response.
Sorry, Smom, but I don’t have an APEC shirt, so I don’t feel particularly “busted”.
Sorry you find dissent synonymous with “attack”. By all means stay in your cocoon, and keep your thoughts pure.
Annie – you will feel better knowing that many of those illegals that Obama is going to give amnesty to are going on Medicare.
SWM, yup.
Rightists are in high dudgeon over this Gruber thing. It’s best just to let them have their feeding frenzy. When they calm down perhaps a discussion of a realistic form of health care for America can resume. Looks like they will be newely outraged over Obama’s impending Executive action on immigration. Interesting times.
Next they will be insulting our families, Annie.
Annie, Time to go. The right wing attack dogs have arrived.
President Obama’s remarks at the American Medical Association, June 15, 2009: “I know that there are millions of Americans who are content with their health care coverage — they like their plan and, most importantly, they value their relationship with their doctor. They trust you. And that means that no matter how we reform health care, we will keep this promise to the American people: If you like your doctor, you will be able to keep your doctor, period. If you like your health care plan, you’ll be able to keep your health care plan, period. No one will take it away, no matter what.”
NO MATTER WHAT!!!!!!!!!!!