“Congressman Mike Lawler Lied to My Face”
For Immediate Release: February 27, 2025
“Congressman Mike Lawler Lied to My Face”
NEW YORK – Mike Lawler was called out by actor and comedian Michael Ian Black after Lawler lied to Black on CNN last weekend, vowing to protect Medicaid before voting on Tuesday for a reckless budget proposal that includes hundreds of billions of dollars in cuts to Medicaid. Black slammed Lawler for lying to his face and evading questions with “politician doublespeak.” As Black pointed out, “it is impossible to cut $880B without cutting either Medicare and/or Medicaid,” yet Lawler “lied about something incredibly important to a lot of people.” Read the piece below:
Michael Ian Black: Congressman Mike Lawler Lied to My Face
February 26, 2025
Congressman Mike Lawler lied to my face. Last week, Congressman Lawler appeared on Have I Got News For You. After our host, Roy Wood Jr., asked him how he would vote regarding proposed Medicaid cuts, Lawler said he would vote against cuts to beneficiaries. I pressed him, asking if that meant he would vote no when the Republican budget bill came to the floor. He tried to evade the question, repeating that he would not vote for cuts to beneficiaries. I told him that was politician doublespeak and it was bullshit. Which, to be honest, he didn’t love.
Then I felt bad about confronting him so directly, and wrote a piece about it which you can read by clicking here. As it turns out, I needn’t have felt any guilt whatsoever because Congressman Mike Lawler lied to my face.
Last night, he voted for the Republican budget bill, which mandates $880B in cuts over the next decade, which must come from “within the Energy and Commerce committee’s jurisdiction,” according to this article from the New York Times. I’ll cut to the chase so you don’t have to read the whole thing – it is impossible to cut $880B without cutting either Medicare and/or Medicaid. Congressman Lawler knows this but still voted for the bill.
Now, I should be clear: when I asked the congressman if he would vote against the bill, I fully expected him to lie. In fact, I expected him to do exactly what he did, which was to parse his answer in such a way that he could pretend he didn’t vote against Medicaid cuts when he did - otherwise known as lying. […] he also lied about something incredibly important to a lot of people.
If it sounds like I’m being sanctimonious, you can bet your sweet ass that’s exactly what I’m doing. Have I ever lied? Yes I have. Have I ever lied about cutting hundreds of billions from a program that “provides comprehensive coverage of health and long-term care to 83 million low-income people in the United States”? I have not. But Mike Lawler did.
Congressman Lawler could have said that he hoped he would not be in a position to vote for Medicaid cuts. He could have said that he would vote for appropriate Medicaid cuts. He could have said any number of things about how difficult it is to balance priorities. He didn’t. He said he wouldn’t cut Medicaid. And if he wants to repeat that he said he wouldn’t “cut benefits to beneficiaries,” that’s fine, but he needs to explain how you cut hundreds of billions from Medicaid without reducing benefits or services. He can’t. Because it’s impossible. And he knows it’s impossible. He lied.
A politician lied, you might be thinking, Big deal. [...] The rest of the world might be living in a post-truth era, but I’m not there. I don’t think I’ll ever get there. I can forgive a lot. I can even forgive lying. But I have a hard time forgiving lying done in the name of personal ambition and moral cowardice. Mike Lawler lied to my face, and he lied to yours. He does not deserve to remain a public servant.
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