Andy Harris and his party practice a corrosive Republican alchemy, turning innocuous factoids into lies ("Rep. Harris talks data collection, Benghazi and ObamaCare in Bel Air," Jan. 25).
Exhibit A: "The Congressional Budget Office shows the Affordable Care Act will cost 2.3 million jobs!" It's a jobs Benghazi!
Except, for people forced to work only to keep insurance, these aren't "lost jobs."
An older worker couldn't retire because his 57-year-old wife's pre-existing conditions made getting her own policy impossible. Thanks to the Affordable Care Act, that guy can retire, because his wife can now afford insurance until she reaches Medicare age. He's finally able to enjoy the fruits of his working life without abandoning his wife's well-being. That's not a "loss," Mr. Harris, that's the rewards of love and hard work.
A worker delays leaving her job to start a new business because her family can't go without her employer's insurance. "Obamacare" makes health insurance affordable; so the odds improve slightly for the gamble of starting her own business. That's a new business — something Rep. Harris and his Republican party claim to support.