Is the Republican healthcare bill falling apart? Or is this merely the calm before the sh-tstorm? I can’t tell, mostly because I’ve gotten used to a newscycle that involves one hopeful story which is then followed by ten cataclysmic stories. For now, it looks like the Senate won’t be voting on their appalling, vile and contemptible GOP healthcare bill. The vote was supposed to be this week, just before the Senate went on recess for the Fourth of July holiday. So, what happened?
Mitch McConnell is a sad turtle. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell was the one calling all the shots in the Senate’s GOP healthcare bill. He f–ked it up from the start, doing everything in secret and failing to inform Democratic senators and most of the Republican senators about what was going into the bill. As a result, this week’s whip count has been increasingly dire, even though the GOP has a majority in the Senate. If McConnell called for a vote on Thursday, the bill would likely go down in flames. So he pulled the vote. The Senate will vote after the recess… and after every senator goes home and talks to their constituents, I would hope. Politico has a good story about what was happening “inside the GOP’s surprise healthcare flop.”
Trump isn’t a closer. This NYT story says Trump, who has always referred to himself as a closer and a dealmaker, can’t really close this healthcare deal. The piece is interesting though – while it’s clear that Trump is an idiot incapable of seeing the larger chess game of legislating, it’s also clear that Trump and his associates are more than capable of maintaining petty, nonsensical grudges in the short-term, grudges that end up doing long-term harm. Basically, Mitch McConnell has kept Trump at arm’s length on the healthcare negotiations because McConnell knows – rightly – that Trump will end up blowing sh-t up with pettiness and stupidity.
Chuck Schumer, hero? Schumer is the Senate Minority Leader and he kept his caucus in line against the healthcare bill, and scored several moral victories in the process. Compared to McConnell and Trump, Chuck Schumer is the hero we deserve.
Still, McConnell will probably call for a vote after the recess, so be prepared. Attend the townhalls in your districts and states during the congressional recess. Call. Leave messages. Write letters and emails and tweets.
Photos courtesy of Getty.
To quote Sunshine Anderson, “I’ve heard it all before.”
I’m not American and even I feel torn about this bad/good news. From the bottom of my West Indian living in the UK heart, I hope that the dark side of the force will be defeated soon.
Me too, sister. Me too.
HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!.
Now that that is out of the way. We really do need to be vigilant and go after every Senator who either said no or is still somehow on the fence about this. This is the exact same thing that happened in the House and they came back with something even worse and passed it. We cannot rely on Trump and his racist band of thieves’ incompentance to completely kill this bill.
Chuck Schumer is not the hero we deserve. You are giving him too much praise for doing the least. I will give him credit for keeping Joe Manchin’s shady behind in line though.
RE: Chuck Schumer
THANK YOU. I am so over hearing praise heaped on him (and other party leaders) for doing the absolute least.
I was at a rally in NYC shortly after the election. When Schumer got up to speak, the initial cheering was eventually drowned out by a chorus of ‘We’re watching you!’, it was awesome.
The Democrats are all over the place and he is doing what he is supposed to do. I don’t really see anyone else who could do it. He’s not my favorite but I don’t need to like him. I need him to block and throw wrenches in their evil plans. Twist arms, threaten, bully I don’t care. If someone better comes along then great but he has managed to block this for now.
Well said. Schumer is no hero, the senators who would be a problem – Manchin and Heitkamp – know damn well that their states benefit greatly from the ACA. Schumer flakes when the going gets tough. He was only named the leader because Reid believed Clinton would win.
I think some of the Republican governors who aren’t first rate wackos are why this didn’t get voted on. Also: dems need to take back some governorships.
I don’t hate Schumer, but Harry Reid was better at this stuff.
When he came out and spoke to the press he looked like he wanted to cry. Taking health care from millions of people is an emotional thing. Especially when it didn’t work the way you wanted. He and the GOP are disgusting. I’m listening to them on CNN twisting and turning facts to fit the lie they are trying to tell the American People. And just remember we the American People pay for the Health Care for all of those in Congress. We make sure they have excellent coverage. But they can’t or won’t do the same for the American People.
IT should be mandatory that whatever fresh hell healthcare bill they pass, that will be their healthcare plan moving forward. Right now, they are drunk with power and wheeler dealing total bullcrap as a gift to the Koch and Mercer families / insurance companies. They know that this won’t personally effect them in any way.
They need some skin in the game to make this real.
I just want one news organization to ask the GOP puppets (surrogates, representatives and senators) out spouting lies about the health care bills one thing: If these bills are so great for the American people, why won’t the House and Senate subject themselves and their family members to them? (either version) Instead, they’ve made sure they exempted themselves from it and get to keep their cushy coverage paid for by the American taxpayers.
Orange Voldemort is bragging on twitter this morning that he knows all about healthcare. Jon Favreau and others have responded by asking him to explain various parts of Medicare, Medicaid, and the private market.
I love it, yet once again want to weep that our own POTUS is such a complete and utter ignoramus.
Handy chart showing net loss in health coverage by 2026.
http://twitter.com/kylegriffin1/status/879704055479754753
My state, Alabama, has a population of nearly 5,000,000 and will lose nearly 500,000 in care. 10%.
This is only a small battle won in a huge war. We saw the same thing happen with the House bill.
Remember, this isn’t about healthcare. Republicans don’t care about sick people. They only care about tax cuts and tearing down Obama’s legacy. And they’re not going to stop until they achieve their goal.
Now that Members of Congress want to bring guns everywhere, I imagine they will just shoot the constituents back home who complain about the tax break for the 1%, oops, I mean TrumpCare?
Also contact the governors in each respective state to put pressure on their Senators. That is why Heller came out against the bill. #resist
This is extremely important. Medicaid makes up a huge portion of a state budget. With that gone, states face some extremely painful decisions that can have deadly consequences. Not all Republican governors are on board with either the House or the Senate bills. I know mine isn’t – Baker has a plan to save the ACA and expand it that his party is ignoring.
Don’t give up hope. We’re still #1 in so many things!
http://twitter.com/dearauntcrabby/status/879842457562886145
McConnell is evil. He had polio as a child, his family was able to treat him due to March of Dimes. So he knows how much a health crisis can financially devastate a family. He just doesn’t care. He got his, so screw everyone else.
“He got his, so screw everyone else.”
This is pretty much the Republican party motto.
Don’t forget the Paul Ryan went to college with govt assistance. Evil men. Karma will bite them when it hurts their kids (it never happens to the evil person – it’s enacted on the kids and grandkids). Orangino clan you better watch out.
Hey, did you hear Trump invented the word ‘mean’? He used it first, then Obama stole it.
YUp! Seth Meyers is my go to and he was pretty funny on that one
Seth’s “closer look” segments are a nightly must see tv.
for those in the USA who want to do speak up about this, check “moveon.org”, and
“The People’s Filibuster to Stop Trumpcare” daily events in Washington on Facebook.
For instance Cory Booker had a sit-down yesterday with several other senators on the steps of the Capitol and it organically evolved into a debate with everyone who felt like speaking up joining. You can find the live-video via his twitter and facebook. It started with two people sitting down in protest, and ended with a couple hundred standing up together.
They will be bribed and vote for it.
My first thought was that there will be some major arm twisting over the break.
MTE.
Yup. They Trumplicans are going to take this break in the action to attempt to buy every Senator who backed off this vote. This isn’t anywhere near over.
Yep, my thoughts too. I was actually surprised the bribing didn’t happen in time for a vote now.
I know I am preaching to the choir but the Senate needs to be closely monitored.
These guys like to pull secret midnight votes and stuff.
One minute you think a vote is dead/postponed and next “Surprise!” they passed it in the wee hours by bullying and bribing the GOP holdouts. Yeah. they’re going on break but I put nothing passed Mitch The Turtle.
Yeah, don’t let your guard down. Be all over these guys.
Hmmm…..a week ago they were dead set on having the vote before the recess and now they decide it will be held after? I sense some sort of diversion tactic brewing. The Republician are not going to back down from this. They have more tricks up their sleeves. Like others have pointed out stay focused. This is far from over
Did they pull up in a Clown Car to tell people no vote?
They aren’t holding town halls so people need to continue to flood their phone lines and protest fundraisers and public events. If they want to be cowards and avoid their constituents we need to bring the fight to them. I call everyday at lunch as a Fl voter because those seem to be swing votes in everything. It’s also why I refuse to get a NYC license.
The recess isn’t a win it’s a delay. Don’t be fooled into complacency
Protests at their local offices AND at their homes.
Lordy I pray that Trump turns on McConnell.
Or vice versa!
I’d like to see both of these fools in the ring. Now that’s what I call must see TV.
Unfortunately all this is is a delay until McConnell and his buddies find a way to tweak it just enough (that is, reword it in a way that sounds moderately less evil than it does now) to sway those few stand out votes. And they will.
I sincerely doubt any of the Republicans currently voting against the bill are doing so out of any sense of fairness. They simply haven’t figured out a way to spin it to their districts. As soon as it is reworked, the GOP will send it through again, probably they same exact way they did it this time-quickly and with little time for review. No one in the GOP is showing any true signs of backbone (and no, John McCain does not count since he likes to talk a big game, but always ends up meekly toeing the party line), and there weren’t THAT many holdouts. I just don’t see this being allowed to fail like it did in the House.
Related, Warren Buffet supports single payer. His partner, Charlie Munger, publicly supported it a couple of months ago in an interview. I’ve long felt new deal democrats like myself (i refuse to play the left/progressive/liberal whack a mole game) need billionaires on our side. Such is oligarchy 😉
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/warren-buffett-single-payer-health-care_us_5952ddade4b05c37bb7a54e8
i wouldn’t underestimate Mitch McConnell. he’s an evil genius and this isn’t a failure yet. he’s going to spend this time cutting deals. don’t let up on the calls and emails and townhalls/events. it is more important now than ever to put pressure on our senators that absolutely cannot pass – especially if you are in nevada, WV, ohio, maine, arizona, colorado, louisiana or arkansas.
Yes, absolutely.
On a funny note, one of my favorite Trump trolls on Twitter does these funny little polls and yesterday he had one that said “Where does M. McConnell get his healthcare? A) doctor, B) veterinarian, or C) auto body shop (iirc). Lol. Veterinarian was in the lead!
Don’t put your guard down yet, Republicans don’t care that their hideous health care bill is monstrous. They don’t care that it hurts low income Americans and gives a massive tax cut to the rich. They don’t care that their supporters will be hurt the most by their horrible health care bill. All they care about is destroying President Obama’s legacy, serving the 1%, and sticking it to liberals. They will keep at this health bill until it passes and the GOP has the money to do it. Yes, it is very dysfunctional.
The GOP needs more time to bribe holdouts with Koch money. They are either bribing or blackmailing everyone. Where is the “maverick” McCain, who represents a state filled with retirees? Where is Lindsay Graham–Little Miss Butter Can’t Melt In My Mouth? Where is Ben Sasse? How can any female GOP senator support throwing protestors out of wheelchairs? How much money does it take to blind them to their fellow men and women? And the fact that they covet an excellent health insurance paid for by the taxpayers they are abandoning, is absolutely immoral. It is disgusting. Keep calling, keep fighting!
Yup, people need to hold the Senate accountable for this atrocious tax cut disguised as a health care bill.
The Senate Finance Committee is tallying calls from people who want a public hearing of the BCRA! 202-224-4515. Please call if you can and say you want to be added to the tally of people who want a public hearing for the healthcare bill. They will then take your zipcode. I just got through!
Of course I want this bill to fail but I am too jaded by recent politics to have any genuine faith. I won’t put anything past the turtle of doom and fellow republicans. I live in VA and I know my senators are solid. We’ll see what happens.
Did you all see the handmaid-inspired protest? Very cool visual I think.
http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/339690-women-stage-handmaids-tale-inspired-protest-outside-capitol
Only 17% of people support this.Exactly what are they gaining by not even trying to represent their constituents who elected them.I believe we know and it is a sad statement about this country now
I saw some GOP representative once say that poor people don’t pay taxes but want the rest of us to take care of them. First of all, if you buy a pack of gum and there is sales tax, you have paid taxes and contributed. Everyone has to buy something sometime in their lives so that means everyone contributes. If you pay rent, you are paying property taxes for the apartment building.
Buy a beer there is liquor tax in some states. Cigarette taxes. All sorts of ways people pay into the system.
Everyone has already earned the right to have healthcare and paid their fair share. It isn’t a moral crime to be poor but it is to punish them for it. It is a moral failing to deny disabled people or anyone with chronic illnesses the care they deserve.
All of them are disgusting greedy excuses for humans and this needs to be pointed out constantly.