Article: USA Today – Senate Republicans unveil health care bill that slashes taxes, rolls back Medicaid
This is politics at its worst. The primary motivation here has nothing to do with health care. It is to “repeal and replace” Obamacare. The party line is that “it was a campaign promise” and GOP senators are saying that giving the people what they want is why they are trying so hard to pass this legislation. Liars. This has nothing to do with campaign promises and everything to do with hurt feelings and political revenge – at the expense of the wellbeing of all Americans regardless of who you voted for.
Let’s take a quick look at all the other big campaign promises that have been diminished or explained away:
1) “Build a wall and make Mexico pay for it.” Well, that’s been put on the back burner (and pretty quickly) because it’s too costly and Mexico said they weren’t going to pay for it. Also, the idea that taxpayers would somehow foot the bill through a border tax was crushed on Twitter before it even materialized as anything close to legislation.
2) “Drain the swamp.” Right. Look at this cabinet of billionaires, political favors, and Trump business cronies and tell me with a straight face that Wall Street, career politicians, and special interests have been pushed out of power. Nope, pretty much the opposite has happened.
3) “Make America Great Again.” Trump’s disastrous international trip pretty much sealed the deal that Angela Merkel of Germany is the “leader of the free world” – the first time since forever that the moniker has been given to anyone other than the president of the United States. Also, uncertainty about Trump’s leadership and competency has also solidified China as the world’s economic leader. So America is less great today than is was just a few months ago in the eyes of everyone except for White Evangelicals and people who get their news from Alex Jones and Breitbart. Even Fox News is conceding this truth.
So why of all the campaign promises (or lies, depending on how honest you are about what has happened since) are we saying that “repeal and replace Obamacare” is what the Trump voter wants these GOP senators to deliver on the most? Especially in light of the fact that the ACA/Obamacare currently continues to have bipartisan support, including amongst the Red State working class Trump voters who have expressed anxiety about losing their health care coverage?
The truth is that the motivations here, in the Senate and a month ago in the House GOP, have nothing to do with the interests of the American people, but have everything to do with the very personal hurt feelings of a bunch of out-of-touch, small-minded, cold-hearted Republican White men, hiding in a room, writing a special-interests favoring bill, with the sole purpose of trying to dismantle the legacy of Barack Obama.
Politics, not people. This is reckless men playing games inside a Washington bubble – Trumping the needs, wishes, and wants of the everyday American. So while old, sick, non-wealthy and naive Americans suffer and die as their health deteriorates and their options to get medical treatment are taken away, these Senators are going to congratulate themselves for sticking it to Obama and the Dems.
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No Simple Answers 