Lindsey Graham Compares Health Care Reform Financing To A "Ponzi Scheme"

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) forcefully pushed back on White House assertions that the health care reform bill would lower the deficit in an appearance on NBC's "Meet the Press" on Sunday.

"This idea it reduces the deficit a flat out lie," Graham said on the program. "You don't include the money we're going to spend to fix the doctor problem, which is $200 billion. So, they took it out of the health care bill and put it in the-- in the jobs bill to make it look like it cuts the deficit. If you add the money we're all gonna spend to-- help doctors-- not get cuts, that wipes out the deficit.

Graham later widened his criticism of health care financing, comparing it to a "Ponzi scheme": "You-- you take $570 billion out of Medicare to pay for the health care bill. Then you're using that same $570 to say it lowers the growth of Medicare over time," Graham said.

He added: "So, it is a house of cards. It is a Ponzi scheme of the first order. It's gonna blow up the deficit. It's gonna affect every business, every family in this country. It was done by one-party rule. And it was-- it was a shame we had to go down this road."