“A Palm Beach native who has spent her career working to project America’s strength and values abroad, Lauren Baer has shown she will put the ability of people in her community ahead of partisan politics. She will fight for Floridians to afford their health care and help ensure they can save for a secure retirement. She is running a strong grassroots campaign, focused on how Washington’s agenda is hurting everyday people, and she is on track to win this November,” said DCCC Chairman Ben Ray Luján.
To: Interested Parties
From: Cole Leiter, DCCC Regional Press Secretary
Date: August 28th, 2018
RE: The Case Against Rep. Brian Mast
Rep. Brian Mast ran for Congress claiming he’d be different from most politicians, but his time in Washington has shown that he’s become just like every other party line politician. He says one thing in Florida, but votes the other way in Washington.
That pattern continues for Congressman Mast across the most important issues he’s encountered in Washington: health care, Medicare and Social Security, and gun violence prevention in schools. While Congressman Mast may think he can get away with typical Washington games, working and retired Floridians need someone they can count on to take their side, not talk a big game at home and then fall in line with their political party in Washington.
That’s not who Lauren Baer is. A product of Palm Beach public schools, a national security expert, and a mom, Lauren Baer worked in the Obama Administration keeping Americans safe by promoting our values abroad and working to make our government more efficient and accountable to us all here at home.
And with a mother living with a chronic illness, Lauren has seen personally the value of a health care system that puts people first- not profits. Lauren will work with anyone to make health care more affordable, and to protect Social Security and Medicare for folks who’ve earned it.
WHAT THEY’RE SAYING
HEADLINE: “Mast gets earful as hundreds pack town hall meeting in Fort Pierce” [Palm Beach Post, 2/24/17]
“Last year, Mast joined failed GOP efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act, better known as Obamacare. Angry residents packed Mast town hall events and excoriated him for his vote.” [Palm Beach Post, 8/2/18]
HEADLINE: “Treasure Coast voters don’t support GOP tax plan, according to new poll” [TC Palm, 12/20/2017]
ED BOARD: “…as someone who was raised in the district, Baer is careful to tie any national issue — such as health care — directly to the residents living there. For example, she notes the roughly 74,000 district residents who would have lost access to affordable health care had the Republicans been successful in repealing the Affordable Care Act.” [Palm Beach Post, 8/08/2018]
HEADLINE: “Lauren Baer hits Brian Mast on health care in new ad” [Florida Politics, 8/6/18]
Brian Mast: A Washington Politician With Harmful Side Effects
Healthcare Sucker Punch
After claiming repeatedly that his party’s health care bill would protect people living with pre-existing conditions [a claim that Politifact called “mostly false”], Congressman Mast voted to gut coverage for people living with pre-existing conditions. Mast took that party line vote in Washington despite more than half of his constituents in Florida’s 18th Congressional District living with some sort of pre-existing condition. Included in those who would be hurt by Congressman Mast’s health care record is Ronnie, a cancer survivor who said Mast’s vote made her feel “like [she] was sucker punched” and that “[she]’s not important enough, or valuable enough” to deserve his support. Mast’s betrayal of Floridians on health care includes his vote to impose an age tax, letting insurance companies charge older Floridians five times more than younger Floridians, which could raise their health care costs by thousands of dollars.
Deficit-hawk, When It’s Convenient
At first, Congressman Mast claimed he couldn’t support Washington’s tax bill because it would increase the deficit. But when push came to shove, Mast’s words weren’t worth the paper they were printed on, and he voted, party line, for a trillion-dollar giveaway to large corporations and special interests. And, while the tax handout gives a $42.7 billion in tax handouts to just 5 big pharma companies, Republican leadership has already said they’d pay for their $1.9 trillion deficit hole by cutting Medicare and Social Security.
Not only will Mast’s deficit-busting corporate tax handout put Medicare and Social Security at risk, it simultaneously jeopardizes health care coverage for 13 million Americans and will raise premiums on Florida families by almost $2,000 dollars.
Dirty Water
Florida’s coastal communities are ground zero for climate change, but instead of working to slow down the impacts of climate change and sea level rise, Congressman Mast voted with his party to slash funding for clean energy and undermine protections for clean water already enshrined in law. In addition to his opposition to clean energy investments, Mast has voted to give greater power to hydropower companies, endangering the rivers and communities who interact with them, as well as further undermining clean water by voting to kill the Stream Protection Rule. And while Mast claims he opposes offshore drilling, his tax bill, in addition to blowing a $1.9 trillion hole in the deficit, will open more federal lands and waters to offshore drilling and gives oil and gas companies billions in benefits .
In contrast to Congressman Mast, when Lauren says she’ll protect our water, our shore, and our way of life we can count on her to follow through on her word. That’s the kind of leadership this community needs.
No More Time For Empty Words
Immediately after the Parkland shooting, Congressman Mast blamed the deaths of 17 students and faculty on violent movies and video games. Then, after significant public outcry, Mast reversed course and made national headlines when he called for a full ban on assault weapons. What Congressman Mast didn’t do, however, was follow up his conspicuously political change of heart with any action in Congress. Mast has refused to cosponsor Congressman Peter Deutch’s bill, which would do exactly what he called for, and has held onto the thousands of dollars in contributions he took from the NRA.
In contrast to Congressman Mast, Lauren Baer has made clear she will take real action to keep guns out of the hands of dangerous criminals, and work to keep schools safe for the children we send there.
PATH TO VICTORY
In a publicly released poll from Public Policy Polling in December of 2017, a Democratic candidate is within striking distance of Republican Brian Mast, earning 44% to Mast’s 45%. This one-point margin indicates how quickly this race can turn in the wake of a strong Democratic candidate, especially in a district with established Democratic performance. This district elected Rep. Patrick Murphy twice in four years. The competitive nature of this race is underscored by Mast’s support for an unpopular tax bill and a politically untenable healthcare repeal attempt.
Mast’s record on healthcare in Washington, in contrast with Lauren’s commitment to bringing down healthcare costs and protecting Floridians with pre-existing conditions, will be a key wedge that allows Lauren to mobilize and motivate voters over 65 and especially women over 65. That group is the most significant and consequential voting bloc in the district and Lauren has worked to engage them in advance of the primary.
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