Thursday, February 24, 2005
AARP and Republicans
A Brief Honeymoon
The AARP's governing body should have seen it coming. During last year's campaign to promote President Bush's prescription drug plan, AARP members were assiduously courted for support. While the rank and file had misgivings about the benefits,the governing body of AARP swallowed the bait hook,line and sinker. The revenue derived by AARP from insurance companies and others also played a role. So, for a while the AARP basked in the sunshine.
The honeymoon didn't last long. Now that AARP is critical of the president's plan to privatize Social Security,it has fallen from grace. AARP members are being castigated by the Republicans. According to Charlie Jarvis, president of the conservative lobbying group, USA Next, "They are the boulder in the middle of the highway to personal savings accounts."
It would be interesting to see if AARP could be bamboozled into toeing the line.
Link to Maureen Dowd's column in The NY Times.
maureen dowd
The AARP's governing body should have seen it coming. During last year's campaign to promote President Bush's prescription drug plan, AARP members were assiduously courted for support. While the rank and file had misgivings about the benefits,the governing body of AARP swallowed the bait hook,line and sinker. The revenue derived by AARP from insurance companies and others also played a role. So, for a while the AARP basked in the sunshine.
The honeymoon didn't last long. Now that AARP is critical of the president's plan to privatize Social Security,it has fallen from grace. AARP members are being castigated by the Republicans. According to Charlie Jarvis, president of the conservative lobbying group, USA Next, "They are the boulder in the middle of the highway to personal savings accounts."
It would be interesting to see if AARP could be bamboozled into toeing the line.
Link to Maureen Dowd's column in The NY Times.
maureen dowd
