Earlier this week, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released a report which shows that Obamacare may cost the economy the equivalent of 2.5 million jobs by 2024. That is a lot of lost income and economic growth for the nation. Today, ATR released analysis of the CBO report and Bureau of Labor Statistics data that breaks down the impact by state.
Virginia, home to one of top 2014 battleground races for United States Senate, may lose 68,662 jobs over the next decade thanks to Obamacare. Going forward, it will be interesting to see how Senator Mark Warner defends casting the tie-breaking vote in support of this job-killing law that includes 20 different tax hikes. Given Senator Warner’s previously broken promises in regards to healthcare reform, his response will be particurally interesting.
Warner’s likely opponent in the general election in 2014 is Ed Gillespie, who has strongly opposed Obamacare. Warner, on the other hand, voted for and actively supported the law, including the 20 new or higher taxes contained in it. As evidenced by the above numbers, this vote will tens of thousands of jobs in the Old Dominion state.
Votes matter, and Mark Warner’s vote for Obamacare is likely to be the central issue of the 2014 Virginia Senate race. For the full breakdown of Obamacare job losses by state, click here.