The whiteboard was surreal. Baiting the press with numbers is one of the few ways to get them to do their job. In this case, it's quite easy. Not only are the Medicare cuts in Ryan's budget, they increase the solvency/life of Medicare and don't effect benefits; they cut the wasteful Medicare Advantage plan which insurance companies use to siphon money regardless of whether care is being provided, and they come from cuts to hospital reimbursement rates that hospitals AGREED to (due to the mandate bringing them more patients). Obama's bases are well covered there.
Meanwhile Romney is advocating turning Medicare into a voucher system that doesn't increase alongside healthcare costs. Crazy shit. And needless to say, the DC townhouse cocktail party crowd has nothing to say about Obama's cuts, and instead focus on the "bravery" of Ryan's overall scheme. Because nothing says "serious" and "bold" like making lower/middle class people suffer.
