Jim Burt: “Of all the daily Republican outrages, the one that’s getting the least attention in proportion to the danger it holds – in my opinion – is the ongoing destruction of the Affordable Care Act by deliberate sabotage: the diversion of public funds appropriated for the purpose of promoting enrollment to propaganda against the law; the 50% reduction in the enrollment period; the torrent of lies about the efficacy of the program. To combat this, a range of responses is needed, including efforts by states and by private charity to take up the slack in promotion and education concerning enrollment during the truncated period, but there should also be a sustained effort by Democrats. Just as Cato the Censor, in ancient Rome, moved a nation to undertake the final conquest of its rival, Carthage, by tacking on ‘Carthago delenda est‘ — ‘Carthage must be destroyed’ — to every public statement and private encounter, Democrats should include a reference to the sabotage of Obamacare: ‘Senator, what do you think the Fed is going to do about interest rates?’ ‘Great question, but first I have to call your attention to the ongoing efforts of the Trump administration to sabotage the Affordable Care Act, which will ultimately hurt almost all of us. As to interest rates, . . .'”
Really: the sabotage is deliberate. They even admit it.
Trump and the Republicans have no clue how to provide “everybody great health care” — let alone at a “tiny fraction of the price” — but told us they did.
What a con job.
The main driver of their effort is repeal of the tax on the rich imposed to help make health care affordable. Republican officeholders’ first priority is always cutting taxes for the rich. Presidential George W. Bush said that “by far the vast majority” of his proposed tax cut would go to “people at the bottom of the economic ladder” — a bald-faced, trillion-dollar lie. Trump tells us he wants a massive tax cut for the middle class that would not benefit him or the rich — but what they’ve proposed would massively benefit him and the rich, so: another trillion dollar bald-faced lie.
It is to cry.
But as soon as the tears dry, go see Kingsman: The Golden Circle. If you saw the first one, it’s likely already on your list. But there’s no need to have seen the first to love the sequel. The basic test: do you like James Bond movies? These are in that genre, but fresher — and crazy fun. (Warning: violence!)
Have a great weekend.
UPDATE to yesterday’s post on our voting against United Nations condemnation of the death penalty for gay sex: Snopes here provides the other side of the story — basically, that the U.S. felt the resolution was too broad, urging nations that have not yet abolished the death penalty altogether to consider doing so. To judge for yourself, here is the resolution. While we’re at it, if you think people aren’t wrongfully sentenced to death, here’s Jon Oliver on the glaring flaws in forensic science. (The clip itself is at the end of the article.)
Now have a great weekend.
