Vice President Pence Speaks on Obamacare in Wisconsin
THE VICE PRESIDENT: Hello,
Before I begin, though, allow me to take a moment to acknowledge what I learned about on my way here to
But suffice it to say, when heroes fall, Americans grieve, and our thoughts and prayers are with the families of these American heroes.
It is great to be back in the Badger State. Thank you all for the warm welcome. And I bring greetings today from my friend, the man that
The President asked me to be here today to thank the good people of
Folks, in President
But you all know about fighters, because that's also a pretty good description of the man who just gave me that very kind introduction.
You know, I've met quite a few governors over the years. I've even had the privilege to be one myself, in the state of
Let me also thank two more distinguished
And also I'm so honored to be joined by another principled leader who fights for
And let me also thank our host today,
It's been 30-plus years, you've built everything that matters, Bob -- a good name, a strong and prosperous company that has made this community and made this state better for it. Direct Supply is a true American success story, and that round of applause is so well deserved.
You know, I like to say that President
Since day one of this administration, our President has taken decisive action to put America back to work and get our economy moving again.
First off, if you haven't noticed, the American people elected a builder to be the 45th President of
Just a few days ago in
But this President's leadership doesn't stop there. From the outset of this administration, I'm glad to report to you that
He's supported energy infrastructure in this country the day that he authorized the Keystone and Dakota pipelines to make affordable American energy flow for our business and our homes. (Applause.)
And just over a week ago, President
It really is remarkable. The burden placed on our country by the
In withdrawing from the
Folks, that's what American leadership looks like. And this President's leadership is making a difference every single day. American businesses are growing and investing in America again. They're creating jobs in this country instead of shipping them overseas.
In fact, since the outset of this administration over 600,000 new private-sector jobs have been created. And under President's watch, unemployment is at its lowest level in 16 years. America is back under the leadership of President
But as the President Trump likes to say, at this
And before I go one step further, let me just tell you from the outset that no matter what the media may be focused on on any given moment, I promise you President
The truth is that we've a lot of important work yet to do. And working with
It's mostly what brings me here today. We all remember the broken promises that helped Obamacare get passed to begin with.
They said if you like your doctor you could keep them. Remember that one?
They said if you like your health insurance you could keep it. We were told that health insurance costs would actually go down not up.
Every single one of those promises has been broken. Now we know the facts. Just last month, our administration released a new study proving that Obamacare has made health insurance unaffordable for millions of Americans.
Here in
And here's the disturbing thing, folks, Obamacare is a disaster here, but
Nationwide, Obamacare has more than doubled premiums for working families. From coast to coast, Americans are facing double-digit premium hikes heading into 2018. It's remarkable in some states we've actually seen health insurance premiums go up not by 93 percent, like here in
While Americans are paying more, they're also actually also getting less for it.
Beyond the premiums, Obamacare plans have skyrocketing deductibles. The cost of than
Obamacare plans offer fewer and fewer doctors and providers, making it much harder for working families to get the care that they need.
The American people know a bad deal when they see one, and that's why they're avoiding Obamacare like the plague. The truth is the most recent information shows that more than 115,000
And going forward, many Americans might not even be able to sign for Obamacare if even they want to because health insurance companies are pulling out of Obamacare exchanges left and right.
And it's only going to get worse. In just the past few months, health insurers have said that they're abandoning Obamacare in nearly two dozen markets, and tens of thousands of Americans, or more, won't have any insurance coverage at all.
Just this week, more than 13,000 people in
And just next door, in
Folks, we're talking about real people, a real crisis -- and good people are being hurt for it, people like
I just had a chance to visit with Julie and her husband, and her story is a story that literally millions of Americans are facing every day. Julie has been buying health insurance for her family on the individual market ever since 2004. Now, Julie I can tell is a hardworking American. She's a great woman and has worked in a small business and living out her dreams every day. She has a great family. She's a mother and grandmother. But she's had some health challenges and issues. And we talked about them, and health insurance has been vitally important to her.
Julie wanted to believe it when
Julie lost her family's health insurance plan. She lost her doctor. And ever since, Julie has been forced to buy health insurance on the Obamacare exchange -- insurance that she can't really afford, can't even use because the deductibles are so high. Last year alone Julie's Obamacare plan cost more than
And it's only gotten worse. Late last year, Julie found out that her premiums were going to increase by another
Folks, Julie literally can't afford Obamacare. In fact, as she just shared with me, Julie made the choice to stop paying for her health insurance for three months just so she could afford to buy Christmas presents for her children and grandchildren.
Folks, that's just plain wrong. No American should ever have to choose between their health care and their grandkids. It's heartbreaking. And as Julie says, she essentially has got to a place where she said, "We have no hope."
But as I just told her, help is on the way. (Applause.)
Julie is here and she's being willing to be the face of Obamacare's failures here. But she's hardly alone. I talked to people in Julie and her husband's situation every day, all across this country. We hear from them. I see them as I travel. She is living proof that Obamacare is collapsing and really taking the opportunities and frankly the quality of life of the American people with it.
As
The truth is you'd have to be blinded by partisanship not to believe otherwise -- and unfortunately some people are.
They're the ones who gave us Obamacare, and now, as your congressmen will tell you, they won't lift a finger to help us rescue the American people from this mess that they created.
Literally every single Democrat in
But as I told her help is on the way, and the Obamacare nightmare is about to end. (Applause.)
Under President
And before this summer is out, we're going to finish what
Building on the work that Speaker Ryan and these great members of
We're going to repeal Obamacare's job-killing mandates and remove the burden of Obamacare's taxes on the American people.
We're going to give Americans more choices with expanded health savings accounts and a new tax credit to help you buy the insurance you need at a price you can afford.
We're going to make sure that every American with preexisting conditions has access to the coverage and the care they need -- no exceptions. (Applause.)
And we're going to reform and strengthen Medicaid to help the people who truly need it the most by giving states like
And the truth is under Governor
Folks, when the
It'll create a dynamic national health-insurance market with lower costs, higher quality, and more choices for working families by the time we're done.
It'll give American businesses like all those that are gathered here today the freedom to give their employees the coverage that they want to give them, and that they need.
And after seven failed years of Obamacare, we'll finally put the American people back in control of their own health care -- people like Julie and her family.
My friends, we've come to a pivotal moment in the life of our nation. For the past seven years, we've had a healthcare system based on the flawed premise that the federal government should order every American to buy health insurance, whether you want it or need it or not; that bureaucrats and politicians know better than patients and doctors what they need; and worst of all; that the American people can't be trusted to run their own lives or make their own healthcare choices as they see fit.
We have a chance before us today to restore a healthcare system based on the time-honored American principles of personal responsibility, free-market competition, state-based reform, and above all else, we have a chance to restore a healthcare system based on the ultimate American principle -- freedom and the freedom of the American people to live their lives and make their choices as they see fit.(Applause.)
So we got our work cut out for us. I mean we are talking about
But make no mistake about it. This is an important time to let your voice be heard so that not only can we get this country on the right track when it comes to healthcare reform, but that we can put America back on the right track to opportunity, prosperity, and greater freedom for every American.
From this day forward, I would submit to you that we need every ounce of your enthusiasm, your energy, your conviction, and your passion.
And in these divided times in the life of our nation, I would tell you that from my heart that we might just need one more thing if you're of a mind.
In much more challenging times in the life of this nation, people that have taken time from time to bow the head and bend the knee have made a difference in this country. So it would be a good time to do that.
Now I'm not talking about praying for any particular officeholder or any particular agenda. I rather like what
So I'd just encourage you to pray for our country. Pray in these challenging times that Americans will continue to come together. Because I know that with your help, with these great leaders in your statehouse and great leaders in the
And to borrow a phrase, I know we're going to make America great again.
Thank you very much. God bless you,
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