More Republican Disinformation On Obamacare?

Ken O’Brien

The latest Republican talking point on Obamacare since the Supreme Court decision upholding the individual mandate has begun to emerge.

The latest use of it to come to my attention was this morning on the MSNBC program The Daily Rundown with Chuck Todd. On the program Senator John Cornyn (R – Texas) spoke of the 22 other taxes in Obamacare in addition to the individual mandate.

Now, frankly, I didn’t know of these 22 other taxes. I knew there were a couple, very few that affected any significant number of people. The experience here in Massachusetts has already shown that the tax penalty for lack of insurance will affect only one percent of the population.

Chief Romney Spokesman: Obamacare Penalty Is Not A Tax

Ken O’Brien

 Eric Fehrnstrom

MSNBC - Eric Fehrnstrom, the Romney spokesman made famous for his 'Etch-a-Sketch' comment, illuminated the struggle his candidate has had in explaining his evolving position on health care reform while appearing on MSNBC’s Daily Rundown Monday.

Republicans, including Speaker of the House John Boehner, have used the Supreme Court's ruling on  the Obama administration's health care law to criticize the president for a new tax on Americans. (The justices ruled the law was constitutional because the government is allowed to levy taxes; The law includes a fine for those who do not comply.) But this causes a problem for the Mitt Romney presidential campaign, which is anti-tax, because Romney passed a very similar health care reform law that included a penalty fee when he was governor of Massachusetts.