That seems to be Congressional Republicans’ approach to repealing the Affordable Care Act. After a week of ~tense~ town halls GOP leaders intent on repealing Obamacare are livin’ on a prayer that their Republican peers won’t dare block an ACA repeal plan, even though many are reluctant to publicly support the strategy now.
Last week, House Republicans released an outline for ACA repeal, which gave a glimpse into how repealing the law would impact most Americans. Tldr: ACA repeal is good for *surprise* the wealth few. This version of repeal will transfer money from low- and middle-income Americans to millionaires. The plan would require massive cuts to Medicaid and much lower tax credits, which means millions of people will lose coverage.
WHAT’S TRENDING
SOTU. Tomorrow President Trump will give a State of the Union Address, but he won’t call it a State of the Union. He’ll address a joint session of Congress tomorrow at 9 PM ET. It’ll be his first prime-time address. Expect the speech to be one part media bashing, one part ACA repeal, one part future “plans.”
State of Trump’s Union. Tomorrow, President Trump will probably claim how he’s making everything great. But, in reality, Trump’s actions have already greatly cost the middle class—$189.5 billion over the next decade—or on average, approximately $1,331 per middle class household, in just his first 39 days. At the same time, Trump has lined the pockets of Wall Street and big business to the tune of $106 billion over the next 10 years. President Trump’s early actions prove his so-called commitment to working Americans is a scam. Read more here.
“The Enemy of the American people.” That’s what Trump called the media. Don’t expect Trump to be fraternizing with the enemy (except Russia) any time soon. For the first time in over 30 years, the President won’t be attending the annual White House Correspondents dinner. Perhaps Alec Baldwin will take his place instead.
Off-Kilter. Tune in to the first episode of Off-Kilter—the only weekly podcast dedicated to poverty and inequality—with guests Ezra Levin, of Executive Director of Indivisible; Sarah Jaffe, author of Necessary Trouble: Americans in Revolt; and Dorian Warren, President of Center for Community Change Action. Follow them on Facebook and Twitter for more.
UNDER THE RADAR
The Owens Family. Just last month, Navy Seal Ryan Owens lost his life during a Special Forces raid in Yemen that killed 25 civilians. The raid—‘risky from the start and costly in the end’—turned out to be a disaster, but was later hailed by the White House as a success. Now the Owens family wants answers, and Owens’ father is demanding a government investigation into the execution and timing of the mission.
TRANSITION TRACKER
Bilden time. Yesterday Trump’s nominee for Secretary of the Navy Philip Bilden withdrew his name from consideration, because he “will not be able to satisfy the Office of Government Ethics requirements without undue disruption and materially adverse divestment” of his family’s finances. His words, not ours. Bilden is the third of Trump’s nominees to withdraw his nomination. Not a good look.
ACTION OF THE DAY
#DivestDonald. President Trump and his administration are using their positions to advance the interested of the Trump Empire at the expense of the American people. Congress must act. Here are the top 10 ways that Trump’s conflicts of interest threaten America’s national security, economy, and democracy, as well as avenues for accountability and tools for oversight. Call your Senators TODAY at 1-866-985-2543 and urge them to co-sponsor Elizabeth Warren’s bill (S. 65) to end Trump’s conflicts.
GOOD NEWS
Modern Day Underground Railroad. Churches across the country are pledging to fight back against Trump’s assault on immigrants by using their congregations to protect unauthorized immigrants. Get the full story here.
History at the Oscars. Last night, Mahersala Ali from Moonlight became the first Muslim actor to win an Oscar. Viola Davis not only gave a memorable speech, but she also became the first black woman to win an Oscar, Emmy, and Tony for acting. And Moonlight was the first ever movie with an entirely black cast to win best picture.