Debate Showed Sharp Contrast

ALLIANCE FOR RETIRED AMERICANS 815 16th Street, NW, 4th Floor ¨ Washington, D.C. 20006 ¨ (202) 637-5399 ¨ www.retiredamericans.org For Immediate Release Contact: David Blank (202) 637-5275 October 3, 2012 dblank@retiredamericans.org Retiree Leader: Debate Showed Stark Contrast Between Two Candidates The following statement was issued by Edward F. Coyle, Executive Director of the Alliance for Retired Americans, in response to the first presidential debate. “Tonight’s debate showed the stark contrasts between the two candidates on key issues of Social Security and Medicare. “President Obama reaffirmed his strong commitment to Medicare and Social Security, two great American success stories. Mitt Romney, relentlessly mischaracterizing recent improvements to Medicare, advanced his plan to gut traditional Medicare with a voucher-based scheme that gives more power and profits to the big insurance companies. In wanting to repeal new Medicare benefits for seniors, Romney chose ideology over facts: the Affordable Care Act is helping over 5 million seniors pay lower drug prices, and 19 million seniors have already received at least one free preventive test or service. “When discussing Social Security, President Obama stood up for workers and retirees, while Mitt Romney falsely linked Social Security to the federal budget deficit, wanting to make workers and retirees pay the price for a problem they did not cause. The Romney-Ryan plan would cut benefits and raise the retirement age to fund even more unneeded tax breaks for millionaires and corporations. “There has never been an election with such stark contrasts on fundamental issues of social and economic justice. President Obama will keep moving our nation forward, but Mitt Romney would roll back the clock on many decades of progress for Americans of all ages. “The Alliance for Retired Americans, a four-million member grassroots advocacy organization, will continue to educate and mobilize seniors across the country about these core differences.” ### The Alliance for Retired Americans is a national organization that advocates for the rights and well being of over 4 million retirees and their families.