United States Congress(NEW YORK) — Jimmy Kimmel ripped into Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana on his show Tuesday night for proposing new health care legislation that Kimmel said fails the “Jimmy Kimmel test” that Cassidy himself had proposed in an appearance on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” in May.
Cassidy appeared on the program earlier this year after Kimmel made an emotional plea for health care legislation that would insure affordable health coverage for all, including people with pre-existing conditions and with no lifetime caps, in the wake of Kimmel’s newborn son needing life-saving heart surgery.
But Kimmel said Wednesday night the new legislation Cassidy and co-sponsor Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., have proposed in the Senate did not meet those requirements.
“Not only did Bill Cassidy fail the Jimmy Kimmel test, he failed the Bill Cassidy test,” Kimmel said. “He failed his own test.”
Kimmel didn’t mince words for Cassidy, who Kimmel said “wasn’t very honest” when he appeared on the show in the spring.
“I don’t know what happened to Bill Cassidy, but when he was on this publicity tour he listed his demands for a health care bill very clearly. These were his words: He said he wants coverage for all, no discrimination based on pre-existing conditions, lower premiums for middle class families and no lifetime caps. And guess what? The new bill does none of those things,” Kimmel said.
Speaking directly to Cassidy, Kimmel said, “Stop using my name, all right, ’cause I don’t want my name on it. There’s a new Jimmy Kimmel test for you, it’s called a lie detector test, you’re welcome to come by the studio and take it any time.”
Kimmel also had strong words for critics on social media unhappy that he has turned his son’s health into a political cause.
“Before you post the nasty Facebook message saying I’m politicizing my son’s health problems, I want you to know, I am politicizing my son’s health problems because I have to,” he said.
Kimmel listed the many health care organizations that have opposed the legislation and called on viewers to take action saying of bill’s backers.
“They’re counting on you to be so overwhelmed with all the information, you just trust them to take care of you. But they’re not taking care of you,” Kimmel said. “They’re taking care of the people who give them money, like insurance companies, and we’re all just looking at our Instagram accounts, liking things, while they’re voting on whether people can afford to keep their children alive or not.”
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