Politics of Obamacare: Checking sen. Cruz's claims; Democrats campaigning in south as 'problem solvers'

Sep 5 2013

The Washington Post Fact Checker assesses the Texas senator's TV ads that seek to drum up support for defunding the health law, while in some southern campaigns, some Democrats hope to portray their opponents as ideologically opposed to progress on issues such as health care.

The Washington Post's The Fact Checker: Ted Cruz's Claims About 'Obamacare' In New TV Ad
As part of his campaign to halt all government funding for the Affordable Care Act, a.k.a. Obamacare, Cruz makes three assertions about "bipartisan" concerns about the new health-care law. Let's look at each of these claims in detail (Kessler, 9/3).

The Associated Press: Southern Democrats Campaign As 'Problem Solvers'
As Democrats try to curtail GOP dominance in the South, the party's top recruits for 2014 elections are trying to sell themselves as problem solvers above Washington's partisan gridlock. They're casting the Republicans' anti-government mantra and emphasis on social issues like abortion and gay marriage as ideological obstacles to progress on "bread-and-butter" issues like public education, infrastructure and health care (Barrow, 9/3).

In other political developments -

The Associated Press: Conservatives Pressure Georgia Senators On Health Care
As part of a burgeoning national movement, tea party and other conservative activists are pressuring Georgia's two Republican senators to join the effort to deny money for implementing President Barack Obama's health care law. Sens. Johnny Isakson and Saxby Chambliss say they're all for stopping the law, just not shutting down most of the federal government to do it (Barrow, 9/3).

Atlanta Journal Constitution: Obamacare Defunding Effort Splits GOP
So far, only a minority of Capitol Hill Republicans are demanding the next federal spending bill not include a dime for the Affordable Care Act (Bluestein and Malloy, 9/3).

San Jose Mercury News: 10 Republicans Who Helped Implement Obamacare
While Republicans in Congress have vehemently opposed the 2010 health care law, some Republican governors have taken a more pragmatic approach. Here's a look at 10 (Beckwith, 9/4).