Generation Opportunity, a conservative group affiliated with the billionaire brothers Charles and David Koch, is resorting to more elaborate tactics to dissuade young people from obtaining insurance coverage through the Affordable Care Act.
The group announced that it will be hosting a "Creepy Carenival" July 23 on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., "to expose Obamacare for the freak show that it really is."
"It's no secret that Obamacare hasn't lived up to the hype: All across the country premiums have spiked, millions have lost their insurance and their doctors, and, what's worse, we're continually being sold a bundle of lies about how great Obamacare has been for our generation!" reads an invitation to the fair.
A video promoting the event features a frightening clown in a doctor costume measuring a woman's blood pressure. In a nod to the fact that insurance pools depend on a diversity of participants from different age groups, the woman then falls into a dunk tank labeled "high-risk pool."
Generation Opportunity's "creepy Uncle Sam," who is better known for showing up between the stirrups in gynecological exams, also makes an appearance in the video.
The group promises that the Obamacarenival will have "attractions" such as tightrope walkers, aerialists, jugglers, magicians and a "creepy hospital." It alludes to the possibility that the carnival is the first in a fall tour, so the group may host more events closer to Halloween and November's general election.
The Obamacarenival represents the Virginia-based group's latest tactic in a string of attention-grabbing moves. The group's "brand ambassadors" visited college campuses last fall, hosting events at football tailgate parties to encourage students to opt out of the exchanges (and therefore pay the corresponding penalty).
The group has also run television ads targeting Sens. Mary Landrieu (D-La.), Kay Hagan (D-N.C.) and Mark Udall (D-Colo.) over their support for the health care law.
Before You Go
