After eight years of campaigning on repealing the Affordable Care Act, congressional republican leaders finally had their chance last week. And they failed. Not even self-proclaimed closer and deal-maker extraordinaire, Donald Trump, could get the majority to agree on Trumpcare. So on Friday afternoon, Speaker Ryan cancelled the Trumpcare vote for the second time in 24 hours and gave a speech in which he declared, “Obamacare is the law of the land.”
Obamacare remains the law of the land and not only because of Speaker Ryan and Trump’s incompetence, but also because the ACAworks, which is why it is more popular now than it has ever been. But the fight to protect access to quality, affordable health coverage is far from over.
ACTION OF THE DAY
#NoInvestigationNoConfirmation. The Senate Judiciary Committee is set to vote on Gorsuch’s nomination on April 3rd. But the news of an FBI investigation into possible coordination between the Trump campaign and Russia’s efforts to interfere in our presidential election raise serious concerns. Trump should not be able to move forward with any appointments, much less a lifetime appointment to the highest court, until this investigation is complete. Sign this petition calling to halt Gorsuch’s nomination process until the FBI investigation is complete.
WHAT’S TRENDING
SWAT team. Trump is reportedly starting one in the White House. This team will have “sweeping authority to overhaul the federal bureaucracy and fulfill key campaign promises,” according to the Washington Post. The team will be led by Jared Kushner, who in addition to being charged with driving domestic policy has been named Trump’s lead adviser on relations with China, Mexico, Canada, and the Middle East. Kushner also skipped the Administration’s first big fight for a trip to Aspen.
Russia. Over the weekend, major anti-government demonstrations broke out across Russia. Hundreds of people—including Alexei Navalny who is running against Putin in next year’s election—were arrested at the peaceful demonstrations because the protests weren’t authorized by the Russian government. The Trump Administration was (unsurprisingly) silent for hours after the arrests. Need a “who, what, when, where” of all things Trump and Russia? We’ve got it right here.
Next. Now that efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act are done (for now) the Trump Administration is moving on to other simple things like tax reform and passing a budget. We wrote about how Trump’s budget outline hurts his voters in rural and small-town America. Now, new analysis shows he’s breaking his promises to manufacturers too.
UNDER THE RADAR
DREAM detained. Yesterday, Francisco J. Rodriguez Dominguez, a 25-year-old DACA recipient living in Portland, Oregon was arrested at his home by ICE officials. Francisco is one of several DREAMers who have been detained by ICE officials in recent weeks. Information on how to help Francisco here.
GOOD NEWS
For leggings wearers. Twitter supports you. Even if United Airlines doesn’t.