“This year, we mark the 80th anniversary of Social Security. We mark the 50th anniversary of Medicare. We’ve grown so accustomed to these programs being a part of American life – these bedrock, foundation stones of our society – sometimes it’s easy to forget how revolutionary they were at the time. They were hard to get done. When FDR tried to pass Social Security, critics called it “socialism.” When President Kennedy and President Johnson – and the Dingells – worked to create Medicare, cynics raised the alarm about government takeover of health care. And now we’ve got signs saying, “Get your government hands off of my Medicare.” – Barack Obama