I just overheard Matthews conflating "single-payer" with a "nationalized healthcare system."
They're not the same, Chris! Read this carefully, sir. Single-payer is merely a health insurance program whereby the federal government is the sole provider of health insurance coverage. Medicare for all. Nothing more.
The public option will NOT lead to "a government takeover of healthcare," as many wingnuts are screeching about -- perhaps health insurance, but not the whole system. In other words, no one is pushing for the nationalized British system, whereby the government owns the hospitals, employs the doctors and so forth.
Goddamn.
It's no wonder why people are confused about this stuff. When the so-called very serious "experts" have no flipping clue what they're talking about, it makes it very difficult for their viewers to get it. And it's not like Mr. Five Million Dollar Annual Salary can't afford a staffer to print out the Wikipedia entry for single-payer.
Just remarkably stupid.