fixing the problem. making sure we don t bankrupt the country. so there are folks up here, a large majority of us, willing to do tough things like we did yesterday. but when you saw you re going to limit the amount of federal spending, that is an artificial arbitrary line. how do you hold that line in a society where people are getting older all the time and you have more and more people with entitlement, who have paid into medicare, who expect to get full medical treat after age 65 and now say we re going to change that system? that s not an arbitrary line. it started at 18, 18.5%, which was the 30 or 40-year historical average on the revenues that come into this country. the 20% is that same period of time average, 30 to 40 years, that s the average we spend. we should be able to live within that means. even the president said he wants us to live within our means. i think we re all saying the same things, we need to live one
our means. so we gradually reduce our commitment to people over 65 to keep it below 20. we have to. that s a fact. you can t keep the same commitments, total health care, if you re going to constrain the growth in federal spending? one of the most overlooked pieces, if you are rich, you re going to pay more for your medicare. weapon we re willing to consider raising the rear tirmt age, two months we have put these difficult things on the table. we got five democrats yesterday. we overlooked that. it was a bipartisan vote yesterday. you re a good guest on our show. i m a big fan. thank you.
have taken so firmly the position they have taken, so people believe and begin to thing you aren t willing to make those compromises. they have said consistently they said to see something from the administration. they re looking, where do you want to cut? how do you want to address the entitlement challenges? if the president has laid it out, let s produce that evidence, so we can see michael, i think you re usually up to date, but did you read the bill yesterday passed by the house? it doesn t have any specifics on the cuts. there s no specific cuts in there. your party just dodged it again. no, they haven t dodged it again, because republicans have talked about whether it was the ryan plan but no touching of social security of medicare or medicaid. you ve got to get up to date. i m very much up to date. it makes no reference to entitlements.
fixing the problem. so there are folks up here, a large majority of us, willing to do tough things like we did yesterday. but when you saw you re going to limit the amount of federal spending, that is an artificial arbitrary line. how do you hold that line in a society where people are getting older all the time and you have more and more people with entitlement, who have paid into medicare, who expect to get full medical treat after age 65 and now say we re going to change that system? that s not an arbitrary line. it started at 18, 18.5%, which was the 30 or 40-year historical average on the revenues that come into this country. the 20% is that same period of time average, 30 to 40 years, that s the average we spend. we should be able to live within that means. even the president said he wants us to live within our means. i think we re all saying the same things, we need to live one
it s all about the easy stuff. you know that. because it doesn t matter. but i agree that party doesn t matter. we re still waiting for the president to tell us specifically what he s going to cut. will you admit the house vote doesn t even talk about medicare, medicaid, all it talks is about more money for terrorism, the usual stuff. you re right about that. also joan? i ve got to say here, look, the president has backed whatever we re calling them, the gang of six proposal. he said that s fine with him. now the republicans are say there s not enough meat in it. paul ryan attacked the president for not supporting the deficit commission recommendations, which paul ryan didn t support. so there s so much hypocrisy, so much double dealing, so much not being up front that s the crux of the frustration of the american