WILL BRANSTAD CONTINUE TO SUPPORT INDIVIDUAL MANDATES?
Terry Branstad once supported individual mandates for health insurance. Will candidate Branstad continue to support individual mandates during a competitive Republican primary?“Branstad has a history of flip-flopping and talking out of both sides of his mouth. Iowans have to wonder what is Branstad's real position on individual mandates?” said Iowa Democratic Party Chairman Michael Kiernan.
“Mitt Romney, for instance, is trying to distance himself from the same individual mandate he instituted in Massachusetts because it’s not popular with the Republican Party base. He’s pandering, and it sounds like just the thing Terry Branstad would do.”
Both Branstad and Romney have a history of supporting individual mandates:
- In 2006, Mitt Romney signed an individual mandate into law in Massachusetts and issued an ardent defense in the Wall Street Journal.
- In 2007, Branstad joined Tom Vilsack to propose individual mandates for Iowans to the Iowa State Legislature.
“Now that many Republicans are fighting against individual mandates, will candidate Branstad stick to what he said before or will he too try to disassociate himself from his support of individual mandates?” asked Kiernan.
BACKGROUND
Health Care for Everyone? Op-Ed by Governor Mitt Romney. “With private insurance finally affordable, I proposed that everyone must either purchase a product of their choice or demonstrate that they can pay for their own health care. It's a personal responsibility principle. Some of my libertarian friends balk at what looks like an individual mandate. But remember, someone has to pay for the health care that must, by law, be provided: Either the individual pays or the taxpayers pay. A free ride on government is not libertarian.” [Wall Street Journal. 4/11/2006]
Former Iowa Govs. Branstad, Vilsack propose requiring Iowans or businesses to buy health insurance. “Two former Iowa governors recommended Wednesday that Iowa impose universal health insurance coverage by requiring individuals or businesses to purchase policies. Ex-Govs. Terry Branstad and Tom Vilsack told a legislative commission that the system could provide incentives for screenings, wellness and preventive measures designed to head off medical emergencies that drive up costs and insurance rates.” [Associated Press 10/11/2007]
Romney attacks health care law similar to his own "He's explaining the differences between Massachusetts and Washington in some very subtle and complex ways, and politics is about simple truths — particularly in party primaries," said Jeffrey Berry, a political science professor at Tufts University in Massachusetts. Berry noted that both laws require that people get insurance coverage, and both impose new taxes and penalties — "anathema to mainstream Republicanism. And both involve a significant expansion of government. So, on all those counts, Mitt Romney is vulnerable." [Associated Press 3/26/10]