Ron Johnson lets it all hang out
by digby
Granted, he is the stupidest member of the US Senate (at least until Roy Moore gets there) so it’s to be expected. Still, hearing a Republican say it out loud is always bracing:
When asked by a high school student in Wisconsin whether he considered health care a right or a privilege, Senator Ron Johnson (R-WI) compared access to health care to access to food and shelter, arguing that all three should be considered “privileges” for those who can afford them.
“I think it’s probably more of a privilege,” Johnson said in response to the question. “Do you consider food a right? Do you consider clothing a right? Do you consider shelter a right? What we have as rights are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. We have the right to freedom. Past that point, everything else is a limited resource that we have to use our opportunities given to us so that we can afford those things.”
Johnson then went on to argue that the role of elected officials is not to guarantee everyone a right to health care, but to grow the economy so that more people can afford access to health care. He also referred to comments made by Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) in 2011, when Paul compared the right to health care to “slavery.”
If asked I would guess he defines a right to “life” as a right to be born and not a right to, you know … live.
Also, we are a primitive, backwards country:
Of the 25 wealthiest nations in the world, the United States is the only country not to recognize health care as a right, providing some measure of universal health care to their residents.
Hey, as far as Ron Johnson is concerned, you don’t have a right to food or shelter either.
But don’t worry, nice rich people like Ron Johnson and Donald Trump might decide to be generous and throw you a crumb of delicious chocolate cake from their limousines if you beg very, very nicely.
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