Medicare, entitlements: Key political sparring points

Although congressional Democrats and President Barack Obama hope to make electoral hay out of the GOP budget's Medicare revamp, GOP Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney is proving to have appeal. During the primary thus far, Romney has fared well with older voters in swing states.

The Wall Street Journal: Both Parties Wooing Seniors
President Barack Obama and Democrats are counting on regaining support from older voters who switched to the GOP in 2008 and 2010 by attacking Republican plans to revamp Medicare. But Mitt Romney is proving to be a formidable competitor in this battle (Hook, 4/8).

Politico: Durbin To Mitt: What's Your Plan On Entitlements?
Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) said Sunday that Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney has no plan to deal with the millions of seniors reaching retirement (Tau, 4/8).

In other Medicare news --

NewsHour: Medicare 'Less Generous' Than Private Plans, Study Finds
Pick your adjective: wildly popular, unsustainable, politically convenient, endangered. At a time when politicians of all stripes are considering drastic changes to "Medicare as we know it," the Kaiser Family Foundation has another way to describe the program: "less generous." On average, Medicare recipients receive less coverage than the typical elderly employee of a large company, according to a new report from the foundation. That's even after the program's drug coverage benefits are factored in (Kane, 4/6).