Letter: Ayn Rand’s influence in the rush to repeal Obamacare

House Speaker Paul Ryan was inspired to become a politician when he read “Atlas Shrugged” by Ayn Rand. The premise is simple: There are makers and there are takers. The makers create wealth and provide jobs. The government taxes the makers and gives the money to the undeserving takers. Whenever government does this, the takers call it entitlements. The Republicans call it welfare, class warfare and a redistribution of wealth.

The rush to repeal and replace Obamacare is a masquerade. It is a huge tax cut for the wealthy, disguised as health reform. Republicans cannot pass more tax cuts for the rich by a simple majority in the Senate unless they do so in a way that doesn’t add to the deficit. By cutting money for Medicaid and Obamacare, they will able to reduce the federal deficit and thus can move to tax reform where the lion’s share of tax cuts will again go to the wealthy.

Die-hard conservatives Ryan, Clarence Thomas and Ben Carson are all Ayn Rand devotees. All have benefited from government largess. Ayn Rand, herself, was recipient of both Social Security and Medicare near the end of her life.

Johnnie Najarian

River Edge, March 20