GOP 2017 TAX BILL PROVES THEY STILL CONTROL THE MONEY IN POLITICS (BILL HIGHLIGHTS)

GOP 2017 TAX BILL PROVES REPUBLICAN PARTY STILL CONTROLS MOST OF THE MONEY IN POLITICS: (BILL HIGHLIGHTS)

WHAT CAN DEMOCRATS DO BEFORE 2020 TO PUT SOME OF THAT MONEY BACK INTO HANDS OF "AVERAGE, HARDWORKING JOE" VOTERS??

TRUMP CALLED FOR CHANGES TO THE HOUSE TAX BILL BEFORE IT PASSED.

13 HOUSE REPUBLICANS VOTED AGAINST THIS OMNIBUS "RICH GET RICHER" TAX BILL.


Sources: AP, Fox News, MSN, NY TIMES, Youtube


**** The House just passed its big tax bill. Here's what is in it.


President Trump and GOP House Speaker Paul D. Ryan (Wis.) won a major victory as the House passed the tax bill Thursday, the central piece of the Republican plan to boost the U.S. economy.

No Democrats voted for the bill. Ryan could lose 22 GOP votes, but in the end, he only lost 13.

The legislation would affect every American household and business owner.

The bill was first introduced Nov. 2 and was voted on just two weeks later, leaving little time for analysis or debate on the 440-page legislation.

The next step is for the Senate to pass its version and then for both chambers to reconcile their substantial differences.

The main goal of the House's “Tax Cut and Jobs Act” is to lower taxes on companies in an effort to make them more competitive and discourage them from moving abroad.

The bill reduces the corporate tax rate from 35 percent to 20 percent and the rate for pass-through businesses down to 25 percent (with some restrictions).

Many families would also pay less, although Ryan has admitted that won't be the case for everyone. Here's a rundown of what is actually in the final version of the bill that passed.

It keeps the Affordable Care Act's individual mandate.

The House voted on a tax bill only.

The Senate bill includes a provision to scrap the legal requirement that almost all Americans buy health insurance or pay a penalty.

The House isn't touching that, which may lead to a showdown between the two chambers if they have to resolve their very different versions of the bill

Big businesses win.

The House bill cuts the top rate that large corporations pay from 35 percent to 20 percent, the biggest one-time drop in the big-business tax rate ever. It is a permanent change that does not expire.

On top of that, companies would get some new tax breaks to help lower their bills, such as the ability to deduct all the costs of purchasing new equipment for five years, as well as a special low rate on any money they bring back to the United States from low-tax countries such as Ireland.
Many businesses have been holding cash overseas to avoid 35 percent U.S. taxes.

Now they would get to bring the money home at a tax rate of 12 percent.

The entire business tax system would also change from a worldwide system, in which money anywhere around the globe is taxed, to a territorial system in which it's mostly money made in the United States that is taxed.

Businesses have long lobbied for this change.

Small businesses get a mini-win.

The National Federation of Independent Businesses, the largest small business lobby, initially was against the House bill, but Republicans made some changes and now the NFIB is giving its blessing.

95 percent of American businesses are organized as pass through companies (LLCs, S-Corps, partnerships), and they “pass through” the business income to the owner's individual tax rate.

The House plan lowers the top rate from 39.6 percent to 25 percent for small businesses (excluding “service companies” like consultants and lawyers) and requires a complex formula where the 25 percent rate only applies to about 30 percent of the business income.

But the reality is most small businesses — 85 percent — already pay taxes at rates of 25 percent or less.

To help out the small “mom and pops,” the final bill has a 9 percent rate on the first $75,000 in income for business owners making $150,000 or less.

But that tax break phases in, meaning it isn't fully available until 2022.

<<<<< The rich do very well. The wealthy get a lot of benefits in the bill.

The estate tax, which is paid only when property and other assets worth over $5.5 million are passed on to heirs, doubles to about $11 million in 2018 (around $22 million for couples), meaning a lot fewer people have to pay it.

And the estate tax goes away entirely in 2024.

The mega-wealthy also would get to keep charitable deductions, a popular way that lowers their tax bills, and they no longer would have to pay the alternative minimum tax (AMT), a safeguard against excessive tax dodging that's been in place since 1969.

Some wealthy business owners would be able to take advantage of the lower pass-through rate as well.

Overall, the Tax Policy Center found that half the benefits of the bill go to the top 1 percent by 2027.

Donald Trump would probably benefit a lot.

As The Washington Post explains, many parts of the bill help Trump.

One of the interesting ones is that the lower 25 percent pass-through rate would apply to all income for passive real estate investors like Trump, a much better deal than most active pass-through business owners get.

Most Americans pay the same — or lower — taxes until 2023. For the next five years, the vast majority of Americans (92 percent) would either pay less or see little change, according to the official estimates from the Joint Committee on Taxation.

But that shifts sharply after five years. In 2023, only 40 percent of Americans would pay less. Twenty-two percent would pay more (the rest see little change), JCT found

Taxes will get simpler for many. The House bill collapses the seven tax brackets the country has down to just four (12 percent, 25 percent, 35 percent and 39.6 percent).

The top rate becomes a “millionaire rate” applying to income of $1 million or more a year for couples (and of $500,000 or more for individuals).

In an effort to simplify, the House bill also does away with many of the credits and deductions and replaces them with a larger standard deduction, a slightly larger child tax credit ($1,600 per kid versus $1,000 now) and a new Family Flexibility Credit worth $300 a year for individuals and $600 for couples.

The larger standard deduction means the first $12,000 for individuals and $24,000 for couples is tax-free

Say goodbye to most deductions. Almost all itemized deductions are going away, except for three.

The final House bill keeps the deductions for charitable donations, property taxes up to $10,000 a year and the mortgage interest deduction.

The mortgage interest deduction would be capped at $500,000 for mortgages (down from $1 million now).

About 30 percent of filers itemize. Most of the people who itemize claim the state and local tax deduction (SALT) where they deduct their state and local sales, income and property taxes.

Under the House bill, only the property deduction would remain. This hurts people living in high-tax (and often blue) states like New Jersey, New York and California. Several GOP representatives from these states plan to vote no on the bill in protest.

The adoption credit stays. The 401(k) exemption stays.

But . . .

Say goodbye to the tax credits for plug-in motor vehicles. It gets repealed in 2018.

Say goodbye to the deduction for medical expenses. It goes away in 2018.

Say goodbye to being able to write off the costs of your tax preparer. That goes away in 2018.

Say goodbye to the deduction for moving expenses. It goes away in 2018, except for members of the military.

Say goodbye to most tax benefits for college.

At the moment, low and middle income Americans can deduct up to $2,500 a year in student loan interest.

That benefit would go away in 2018.

In addition, grad students who get tuition waivers because they teach or do research would now have to pay income tax on the waiver, a big change.

For students currently in school, the American Opportunity Tax Credit would remain, which allows a $2,000 credit for higher education expenses.

JIMMY KIMMEL vs US SENATOR BILL CASSIDY ROUND 2 ("HE LIED TO MY FACE")

JIMMY KIMMEL vs US SENATOR BILL CASSIDY ROUND TWO ("HE LIED TO MY FACE"):

JIMMY SAYS SENATOR CASSIDY "LIED TO HIS FACE" ABOUT OBAMACARE REPLACEMENT BILL.

WELCOME TO THE WORLD OF REAL POLITICS.

ALL POLITICIANS LIE, THEY SHOULDN'T BUT THEY DO.


Sources: CNN, Eonline, NBC, Youtube


******* Jimmy Kimmel continues fight with Sen. Cassidy's new health care bill


Jimmy Kimmel was ready for the second round of his fight with U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy, saying on Wednesday night that the senator "either doesn't understand his own bill or he lied to me."

"Last night on our show I took a senator from Louisiana, Bill Cassidy, I took him to task for promising to my face that he would oppose any health care plan that allowed insurance companies to turn people with pre-existing conditions away," Kimmel said opening his ABC broadcast on Wednesday night. "He said anything he supported would have to pass what he named the 'Jimmy Kimmel Test,' which was fine... but unfortunately, and puzzlingly, he proposed a bill that would allow states to do all the things he said he would not let them do."

Kimmel then said that Cassidy made "a total about face" and that meant that "he either doesn't understand his own bill, or he lied to me."

The comedian then showed a clip of Cassidy telling CNN's Chris Cuomo on "New Day" Wednesday morning that Kimmel "does not understand" the bill.

"Oh, I get it. I don't understand because I'm a talk show host, right?" the host said before breaking down the bill in detail. "Could it be, Senator Cassidy, that the problem is that I do understand, and you got caught with your GOPenis out?"

On Tuesday night's broadcast, Kimmel took on the senate's new health care bill and Cassidy, saying he lied "right to my face." The Tuesday night monologue went viral and got around-the-clock coverage on cable news networks.

On Wednesday night's show, Kimmel also used a skit called "Barista Theater" to help explain one of the more arcane parts of the Graham-Cassidy bill: block grants. In the proposed legislation, federal funding for Medicaid expansion and subsidies would be rolled into a block grant program. States would be given a lump sum of money and would have a lot of leeway over how to spend it.

In Kimmel's sketch, he showed a barista accepting money for coffee sold in faulty coffee cups. He used the sketch to critique the bill for allowing states to accept federal money intended to make healthcare more accessible, but then keep the money without making care more available.

Kimmel jokingly said that he didn't "want to turn this into a Kanye and Taylor Swift type situation" while also taking down others, like "Fox & Friends" host Brian Kilmeade, who called Kimmel a "Hollywood elite."

"The reason I found this comment to be particularly annoying is because this is a guy, Brian Kilmeade, who whenever I see him kisses my ass like a little boy meeting Batman," Kimmel said. "He is dying to be a member of the 'Hollywood elite.'"

Kimmel also made fun of Sen. Lindsay Graham, who is a co-sponser of the new health care bill with Cassidy, saying Graham "happens to look a lot like my Grandma Jane, who is now deceased."

Kimmel also called out President Trump, saying that there's "no way" the president read the bill and just wants to get rid of it "because Obama's name is on it."

"The Democrats should just rename it Ivankacare," Kimmel said, referencing the president's daughter. "Guaranteed he gets on board."

Kimmel then ended his ten-minute-long monologue by encouraging Americans to call their senators about the new health care bill.

"Please, stop texting for five seconds and make a phone call," Kimmel said. "It really does make a difference, and who knows maybe you'll meet somebody over the phone and fall in love?"

Representatives for Cassidy, Fox News and the White House could not be reached for comment.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


******JIMMY KIMMEL SLAMS NEW HEALTHCARE BILL AND SAYS SEN. BILL CASSIDY "LIED TO MY FACE"

News flash to Jimmy Kimmel: Politicians are politicians.

The Jimmy Kimmel Live! host has used his show's monologues to speak out in favor of universal healthcare since he revealed in May in an emotional announcement on his show that his and wife Molly McNearney's second child together, son William "Billy" John Kimmel, had undergone emergency heart surgery to treat a congenital defect soon after he was born. He has also spoken out against President Donald Trump, who wants to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, aka Obamacare.

Soon after his announcement about his son's ailment, Louisiana Sen. Bill Cassidy, who is also a gastroenterologist, told CNN that any healthcare bill should "pass the Jimmy Kimmel Test," meaning it would cover a child with congenital heart disease. He then appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live! and was asked by Kimmel if he thinks "every American, regardless of income should be able to get regular check-ups, maternity care, all of those things that people who have healthcare get and need?"

"Yep," he said, blinking.

Fast-forward to last week, when Cassidy and fellow Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham introduced a new healthcare bill that waives regulations that require insurers to cover certain benefits, would allow states to opt out of Affordable Care Act protections for consumers, give block grants to states to run their own healthcare programs and end an expansion of Medicaid for lower-income patients and the disabled.

"This new bill actually does pass the Jimmy Kimmel Test," Kimmel said on Tuesday's episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live! "But a different Jimmy Kimmel Test. With this one, your child with a pre-existing condition will get the care he nees if, and only if his father is Jimmy Kimmel. Otherwise, you might be screwed."

JIMMY KIMMEL vs DR BILL CASSIDY, REPEAL OBAMACARE SHOWDOWN; WHAT'S IN THE CASSIDY - GRAHAM HEALTH CARE BILL??

JIMMY KIMMEL vs DR BILL CASSIDY - REPEALING OBAMACARE:

WHAT IS IN THE CASSIDY-GRAHAM HEALTH CARE BILL?

PLEASE TELL AMERICAN VOTERS TO WHOM YOU ARE ACCOUNTABLE.

FAMOUS COMEDIAN CHALLENGES GOP POLITICIAN WHO IS ALSO A DOCTOR, ON THE ISSUE OF AFFORDABLE HEALTH CARE AND DRAFTING A VIABLE REPLACEMENT FOR OBAMACARE.

CASSIDY WASN'T PLEASED.


Sources: BBC News,


***** Jimmy Kimmel attacks Bill Cassidy over healthcare bill


Comedian Jimmy Kimmel has made a scathing attack on a Republican senator behind a new healthcare plan put forward to replace Obamacare.


The late-night TV host - whose son has a congenital heart defect - accused Senator Bill Cassidy of lying "right to my face" in an earlier interview.

Republicans want to abolish President Obama's law, which expanded insurance but did not curb rising medical costs.

Mr Cassidy said the host "does not understand" the coverage in his bill.


Kimmel became a prominent voice in the healthcare reform debate after delivering a heartfelt TV monologue in May describing his newborn son's near-fatal condition.

He said his son Billy would have died if not for the star's expensive healthcare plan, which most Americans are unable to afford.

Mr Cassidy - himself a doctor - pledged that any new healthcare act must "pass the Jimmy Kimmel test" by granting insurance coverage to any child with a pre-existing condition in their first year of life, and to families, regardless of their ability to pay.


But on his programme on Tuesday night after the Republican plan was unveiled, Mr Kimmel said: "This new bill actually does pass the Jimmy Kimmel test, but a different Jimmy Kimmel test.

"With this one, your child with a pre-existing condition will get the care he needs - if, and only if, his father is Jimmy Kimmel. Otherwise, you might be screwed."

He ended his monologue saying Mr Cassidy should "stop using my name", adding "there's a new Jimmy Kimmel test for you, and its called the lie detector test. You're welcome to stop by the studio and take it".

Mr Cassidy denied Mr Kimmel's characterisation of his bill, saying "what is being circulated is by those that wish to preserve Obamacare, and they're doing everything they can to discredit the alternative".


Despite their longstanding opposition to Obamacare, Republicans have so far been unable to agree on a replacement.


Since taking control of the White House, several attempts to rally around a new plan have collapsed.

Now they have only until the end of the month to pass this latest bill.


Under the plan drafted by Mr Cassidy and Senator Lindsey Graham, state governors would get federal money in block grants to run their own healthcare programmes.


It would also allow states to forgo some of the key mandates of Obamacare, like caps on premiums paid by people with chronic illnesses.

Senator Graham said on Tuesday the bill was the party's last chance to "stop the march to socialism".


But critics fear that when left to the states, the money going into the Medicaid programme for people on low incomes would diminish.


Several Republican governors have criticised how rushed the process is and on Tuesday called on lawmakers to abandon this bill in favour of a slower, cross-party approach.

Former President Barack Obama expressed exasperation on Wednesday with the latest attempt to repeal his signature legislative accomplishment.


Speaking in New York at an event organised by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, he said the Republican bill would deprive vulnerable Americans of coverage and further increase costs.
"It's certainly frustrating to have to mobilise every couple of months to keep our leaders from inflicting real human suffering on our constituents," he added.

JOHN MCCAIN'S REPEAL SENATE FLOOR SPEECH IS HYPOCRITICAL (CONGRESS IS NOT A ROBOT)

JOHN MCCAIN'S REPEAL SENATE FLOOR SPEECH IS HYPOCRITICAL:

MCCAIN ANGRILY CHASTISED HIS COLLEAGUES BUT FREQUENTLY CAUSES UNNECESSARY DISCORD VERSUS ENCOURAGING UNITY.

BUT SHOULD CONGRESS OPERATE LIKE A HUGE ROBOT?

NO.

EACH US SENATOR SHOULD PASSIONATELY FIGHT TO PROTECT AND REPRESENT THE LOYAL CONSTITUENTS WHO ELECTED THEM.


Sources: Fox News, TPM, USA Today, Washington Post, Youtube



**** Full text of John McCain's Senate floor speech: 'Let’s return to regular order'


Sen. John McCain, who returned to Washington on Tuesday after disclosing his brain cancer diagnosis last week, spoke on the Senate floor after casting a critical vote to proceed to debate on the Senate's Obamacare repeal legislation. Here are his remarks as prepared for delivery:

“Mr. President:

“I’ve stood in this place many times and addressed as president many presiding officers. I have been so addressed when I have sat in that chair, as close as I will ever be to a presidency.

“It is an honorific we’re almost indifferent to, isn’t it. In truth, presiding over the Senate can be a nuisance, a bit of a ceremonial bore, and it is usually relegated to the more junior members of the majority.

“But as I stand here today – looking a little worse for wear I’m sure – I have a refreshed appreciation for the protocols and customs of this body, and for the other ninety-nine privileged souls who have been elected to this Senate.

“I have been a member of the United States Senate for thirty years. I had another long, if not as long, career before I arrived here, another profession that was profoundly rewarding, and in which I had experiences and friendships that I revere. But make no mistake, my service here is the most important job I have had in my life. And I am so grateful to the people of Arizona for the privilege – for the honor – of serving here and the opportunities it gives me to play a small role in the history of the country I love.

“I’ve known and admired men and women in the Senate who played much more than a small role in our history, true statesmen, giants of American politics. They came from both parties, and from various backgrounds. Their ambitions were frequently in conflict. They held different views on the issues of the day. And they often had very serious disagreements about how best to serve the national interest.

“But they knew that however sharp and heartfelt their disputes, however keen their ambitions, they had an obligation to work collaboratively to ensure the Senate discharged its constitutional responsibilities effectively. Our responsibilities are important, vitally important, to the continued success of our Republic. And our arcane rules and customs are deliberately intended to require broad cooperation to function well at all. The most revered members of this institution accepted the necessity of compromise in order to make incremental progress on solving America’s problems and to defend her from her adversaries.

“That principled mindset, and the service of our predecessors who possessed it, come to mind when I hear the Senate referred to as the world’s greatest deliberative body. I’m not sure we can claim that distinction with a straight face today.

“I’m sure it wasn’t always deserved in previous eras either. But I’m sure there have been times when it was, and I was privileged to witness some of those occasions.

“Our deliberations today – not just our debates, but the exercise of all our responsibilities – authorizing government policies, appropriating the funds to implement them, exercising our advice and consent role – are often lively and interesting. They can be sincere and principled. But they are more partisan, more tribal more of the time than any other time I remember. Our deliberations can still be important and useful, but I think we’d all agree they haven’t been overburdened by greatness lately. And right now they aren’t producing much for the American people.

“Both sides have let this happen. Let’s leave the history of who shot first to the historians. I suspect they’ll find we all conspired in our decline – either by deliberate actions or neglect. We’ve all played some role in it. Certainly I have. Sometimes, I’ve let my passion rule my reason. Sometimes, I made it harder to find common ground because of something harsh I said to a colleague. Sometimes, I wanted to win more for the sake of winning than to achieve a contested policy.

“Incremental progress, compromises that each side criticize but also accept, just plain muddling through to chip away at problems and keep our enemies from doing their worst isn’t glamorous or exciting. It doesn’t feel like a political triumph. But it’s usually the most we can expect from our system of government, operating in a country as diverse and quarrelsome and free as ours.

“Considering the injustice and cruelties inflicted by autocratic governments, and how corruptible human nature can be, the problem solving our system does make possible, the fitful progress it produces, and the liberty and justice it preserves, is a magnificent achievement.

“Our system doesn’t depend on our nobility. It accounts for our imperfections, and gives an order to our individual strivings that has helped make ours the most powerful and prosperous society on earth. It is our responsibility to preserve that, even when it requires us to do something less satisfying than ‘winning.’ Even when we must give a little to get a little. Even when our efforts manage just three yards and a cloud of dust, while critics on both sides denounce us for timidity, for our failure to ‘triumph.’

“I hope we can again rely on humility, on our need to cooperate, on our dependence on each other to learn how to trust each other again and by so doing better serve the people who elected us. Stop listening to the bombastic loudmouths on the radio and television and the Internet. To hell with them. They don’t want anything done for the public good. Our incapacity is their livelihood.

“Let’s trust each other. Let’s return to regular order. We’ve been spinning our wheels on too many important issues because we keep trying to find a way to win without help from across the aisle. That’s an approach that’s been employed by both sides, mandating legislation from the top down, without any support from the other side, with all the parliamentary maneuvers that requires.

“We’re getting nothing done. All we’ve really done this year is confirm Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court. Our healthcare insurance system is a mess. We all know it, those who support Obamacare and those who oppose it. Something has to be done. We Republicans have looked for a way to end it and replace it with something else without paying a terrible political price. We haven’t found it yet, and I’m not sure we will. All we’ve managed to do is make more popular a policy that wasn’t very popular when we started trying to get rid of it.

“I voted for the motion to proceed to allow debate to continue and amendments to be offered. I will not vote for the bill as it is today. It’s a shell of a bill right now. We all know that. I have changes urged by my state’s governor that will have to be included to earn my support for final passage of any bill. I know many of you will have to see the bill changed substantially for you to support it.

“We’ve tried to do this by coming up with a proposal behind closed doors in consultation with the administration, then springing it on skeptical members, trying to convince them it’s better than nothing, asking us to swallow our doubts and force it past a unified opposition. I don’t think that is going to work in the end. And it probably shouldn’t.

“The Obama administration and congressional Democrats shouldn’t have forced through Congress without any opposition support a social and economic change as massive as Obamacare. And we shouldn’t do the same with ours.

“Why don’t we try the old way of legislating in the Senate, the way our rules and customs encourage us to act. If this process ends in failure, which seem likely, then let’s return to regular order.

“Let the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee under Chairman Alexander and Ranking Member Murray hold hearings, try to report a bill out of committee with contributions from both sides. Then bring it to the floor for amendment and debate, and see if we can pass something that will be imperfect, full of compromises, and not very pleasing to implacable partisans on either side, but that might provide workable solutions to problems Americans are struggling with today.

“What have we to lose by trying to work together to find those solutions? We’re not getting much done apart. I don’t think any of us feels very proud of our incapacity. Merely preventing your political opponents from doing what they want isn’t the most inspiring work. There’s greater satisfaction in respecting our differences, but not letting them prevent agreements that don’t require abandonment of core principles, agreements made in good faith that help improve lives and protect the American people.

“The Senate is capable of that. We know that. We’ve seen it before. I’ve seen it happen many times. And the times when I was involved even in a modest way with working out a bipartisan response to a national problem or threat are the proudest moments of my career, and by far the most satisfying.

“This place is important. The work we do is important. Our strange rules and seemingly eccentric practices that slow our proceedings and insist on our cooperation are important. Our founders envisioned the Senate as the more deliberative, careful body that operates at a greater distance than the other body from the public passions of the hour.

“We are an important check on the powers of the Executive. Our consent is necessary for the President to appoint jurists and powerful government officials and in many respects to conduct foreign policy. Whether or not we are of the same party, we are not the President’s subordinates. We are his equal!

“As his responsibilities are onerous, many and powerful, so are ours. And we play a vital role in shaping and directing the judiciary, the military, and the cabinet, in planning and supporting foreign and domestic policies. Our success in meeting all these awesome constitutional obligations depends on cooperation among ourselves.

“The success of the Senate is important to the continued success of America. This country – this big, boisterous, brawling, intemperate, restless, striving, daring, beautiful, bountiful, brave, good and magnificent country – needs us to help it thrive. That responsibility is more important than any of our personal interests or political affiliations.

“We are the servants of a great nation, ‘a nation conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.’ More people have lived free and prosperous lives here than in any other nation. We have acquired unprecedented wealth and power because of our governing principles, and because our government defended those principles.

“America has made a greater contribution than any other nation to an international order that has liberated more people from tyranny and poverty than ever before in history. We have been the greatest example, the greatest supporter and the greatest defender of that order. We aren’t afraid. “We don’t covet other people’s land and wealth. We don’t hide behind walls. We breach them. We are a blessing to humanity.

“What greater cause could we hope to serve than helping keep America the strong, aspiring, inspirational beacon of liberty and defender of the dignity of all human beings and their right to freedom and equal justice? That is the cause that binds us and is so much more powerful and worthy than the small differences that divide us.

“What a great honor and extraordinary opportunity it is to serve in this body.

“It’s a privilege to serve with all of you. I mean it. Many of you have reached out in the last few days with your concern and your prayers, and it means a lot to me. It really does. I’ve had so many people say such nice things about me recently that I think some of you must have me confused with someone else. I appreciate it though, every word, even if much of it isn’t deserved.

“I’ll be here for a few days, I hope managing the floor debate on the defense authorization bill, which, I’m proud to say is again a product of bipartisan cooperation and trust among the members of the Senate Armed Services Committee.

“After that, I’m going home for a while to treat my illness. I have every intention of returning here and giving many of you cause to regret all the nice things you said about me. And, I hope, to impress on you again that it is an honor to serve the American people in your company.

“Thank you, fellow senators.

“Mr. President, I yield the floor.”

51 - 50 JOHN MCCAIN RETURNS TO VOTE FOR REPEAL OF OBAMACARE (HISTORY)

51 - 50 JOHN MCCAIN RETURNS TO VOTE FOR REPEAL OF OBAMACARE (HISTORY):

US SENATE MAJORITY VOTES TO CLEAR TEST VOTE FOR FLOOR DEBATES.

AUTHENTIC AFFORDABLE UNIVERSAL HEALTH CARE FOR THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA IS POSSIBLE.

NOT TAXES AND POPULATION CONTROL DISGUISED AS UNIVERSAL HEALTH CARE BUT AUTHENTIC UNIVERSAL HEALTH CARE.

GOP LEADERS MUST KEEP THEIR HEALTH CARE CAMPAIGN PROMISE TO AMERICAN VOTERS WHO GAVE THEM CONGRESS AND THE WHITE HOUSE.


Sources: Fox News, Euro News, Youtube


***** Senate health bill clears test vote, aided by McCain


Senate Republicans on Tuesday resuscitated their health care legislation for now, narrowly clearing it past a key hurdle with the help of Sen. John McCain’s dramatic return to the chamber for the first time since his brain cancer diagnosis.

The Senate voted 51-50 to start debate, with Vice President Pence casting the tie-breaker. The procedural vote once again brings the ObamaCare overhaul legislation back from the brink of collapse, after intense pressure from President Trump who had demanded senators skip recess until they act on health care.

The bill still faces a tough road ahead. But it was a heavy lift just to get to this point.

No Democrats supported the motion, leaving Republicans to corral the necessary 50 votes. They got exactly that, requiring Pence to break the tie, for the fifth time under the Trump administration.

The airtight vote made McCain’s return all the more significant, as the measure could not have advanced without him.

The result was kept in suspense for a while. Sens. Susan Collins, of Maine, and Lisa Murkowski, of Alaska, voted no from the start. Several other Republican senators then delayed casting their vote, with no wiggle room left for additional defections on the GOP side.

Applause then broke out as McCain entered the chamber, pointing at his colleagues and shaking hands. As he joined, the last GOP holdout, Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., voted with the Arizona senator to start debate.

Trump applauded the development in a statement, urging the Senate to follow through:

"I applaud the Senate for taking a giant step to end the Obamacare nightmare. As this vote shows, inaction is not an option, and now the legislative process can move forward as intended to produce a bill that lowers costs and increases options for all Americans. The Senate must now pass a bill and get it to my desk so we can finally end the Obamacare disaster once and for all."

Tuesday’s procedural vote kicks off what is likely to be another intense round of debate on health care, in which senators are sure to propose numerous changes to the plan – which could either boost or doom its chances. If a bill passes, it would still have to be reconciled with the House version.

McCain warned colleagues after the test vote that he would not support the bare-bones, “shell” bill in its current form as he urged lawmakers from both parties to reach across the aisle.

“We’re getting nothing done my friends,” McCain said from the floor, adding “something has to be done” on health care.

As the test vote began, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., urged his Republican colleagues to follow through on campaign promises to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act.

“We have a duty to act. … The president is ready with his pen,” he said. “We can’t let this moment slip by.”

Moments earlier, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., beseeched Republicans to “turn back.”

“We know the ACA is not perfect. But we also know what you’ve proposed is much worse,” he said.

A rowdy group of protesters also interrupted the start of proceedings, chanting, “kill the bill, don’t kill us” and “shame.”

For their part, Democrats uniformly oppose the effort to tear down President Barack Obama's signature legislative achievement. Republicans control the chamber 52-48, meaning they could afford to lose just two Republicans with McCain around.

Trump had kept up the pressure on GOP lawmakers, tweeting that "After 7 years of talking, we will soon see whether or not Republicans are willing to step up to the plate!" He added: "ObamaCare is torturing the American People. The Democrats have fooled the people long enough. Repeal or Repeal & Replace! I have pen in hand."

McConnell's original bill would abolish much of Obama's law, eliminating its tax penalties on people not buying policies, cutting Medicaid, eliminating its tax boosts on medical companies and providing less generous health care subsidies for consumers. But at least a dozen GOP senators have openly said they oppose or criticized the measure, which McConnell revised as he's hunted Republican support.

For the time being, he won over Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., who backed starting debate. He said McConnell told him the Senate would debate Paul's proposal to scuttle much of Obama's law and give Congress two years to enact a replacement -- an amendment that seemed certain to lose.

Moderates also were seeking additional money for states that would be hurt by cuts in Medicaid, the health insurance program for the poor, the disabled and nursing home patients. Conservatives wanted a vote on a proposal by Ted Cruz, R-Texas, letting insurers offer bare-bones policies with low premiums, which would be illegal under Obama's law.

With leaders still struggling to line up enough votes to approve a wide-ranging overhaul of Obama's law, there was talk of trying to pass a narrow bill -- details still unclear -- so House-Senate bargainers could craft a compromise.

REPEAL & REPLACE OBAMACARE vs LYING GOP SENATORS (BROKEN CAMPAIGN PROMISES)

REPEAL & REPLACE OBAMACARE vs LYING GOP SENATORS (BROKEN CAMPAIGN PROMISES):

GOP SENATORS PUSHED "REPEAL OBAMACARE" AGENDA TO WIN CONGRESS & WHITE HOUSE.

NOW THEY DON'T WANT TO KEEP THEIR VOWS.

REPLACING OBAMACARE WITH TRUE UNIVERSAL AFFORDABLE HEALTH CARE IS NOT IMPOSSIBLE.

IT JUST REQUIRES HARD WORK AND WORKING TOGETHER FOR THE AMERICAN PEOPLE WHO ELECTED THEM.


Sources: AP, Fox News, The Hill, Youtube


**** Trump plays hardball on ObamaCare repeal


President Trump on Wednesday admonished Republican senators over their stalled healthcare push and demanded they resume work on a bill to repeal and replace ObamaCare, setting up a last-ditch attempt to avoid an embarrassing defeat.

Trump invited Republican senators to the White House for lunch a day after their healthcare legislation appeared dead, telling lawmakers they should not leave Washington before reaching a solution, even if it means scrapping their already-delayed August recess.

"Frankly, I don't think we should leave town unless we have a health insurance plan," the president said at the start of the lunch in the State Dining Room. "Because we're close; we're very close."

The president's public tongue-lashing appeared to produce results. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said after the luncheon that he would forge ahead with the repeal-and-replace negotiations.

"Next week, we'll be voting on the motion to proceed, and I have every expectation that we'll be able to get on the bill," McConnell told reporters on the White House driveway.

But success is far from guaranteed. Following the meeting, it wasn't immediately clear whether McConnell would move to a straight repeal of ObamaCare - something the White House had urged earlier in the week - or the repeal-and-replace bill. As of Wednesday, both measures lacked the votes necessary to advance.

The initial collapse of the repeal-and-replace plan was a major failure for both Trump and McConnell and sparked mutual recriminations on both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue, including complaints from senators that the president did little to sell the initiative.

Trump on Wednesday appeared hell-bent on making up for lost time. As television cameras rolled, the president personally challenged GOP senators to get on board, reminding them of their campaign promises to overturn President Obama's signature healthcare law.

He seated himself next to Sen. Dean Heller (R-Nev.), a vulnerable incumbent who opposed the legislation, and ticked off what he said were the benefits of the plan, promising it would stabilize individual insurance markets and lower premiums by "60 and 70 percent."

Trump made it clear that he isn't afraid to use strong-arm tactics to persuade the holdouts.

"Look, he wants to remain a senator, doesn't he?" Trump said of Heller. "I think the people of your state, which I know very well, I think they're going to appreciate what you hopefully will do."

The president added, "Any senator who votes against starting debate is really telling America that you're fine with ObamaCare."

Heller appeared to take the ribbing in stride, tilting his head back and chuckling.

"That's just President Trump being President Trump," Heller told reporters at the Capitol following the lunch.
Trump also took a swipe at Sens. Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) and Mike Lee (R-Utah), the two conservatives who announced their opposition to the repeal-and-replace bill Monday night, stopping it dead in its tracks.

"The other night I was surprised when I heard a couple of my friends - my friends, they really were and are. They might not be very much longer, but that's OK," he said.

While the president seemed recommitted to using the bully pulpit to advance the healthcare effort, it's unclear whether it will be enough to get wavering senators behind a bill that is deeply unpopular with the public.

Only 17 percent of Americans approve of the Senate GOP legislation, while 55 percent disapprove, according to a late June NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll. A new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll showed the measure had only 12 percent support in key counties won by Trump in 2016.

Trump's own approval rating has plummeted - down to only 36 percent in the latest Washington Post/ABC News poll - raising the possibility that vulnerable senators such as Heller will feel emboldened to ignore his pleas.

The president has offered mixed messages on healthcare, and his demand on Wednesday for a repeal-and-replace bill may have added even more confusion to the process.

Just one day earlier, he said that Republicans in Congress should simply abandon their legislative effort and "let Obamacare fail."

That came after a Monday tweet in which Trump appeared to endorse the repeal-without-replace option.

"Republicans should just REPEAL failing ObamaCare now & work on a new Healthcare Plan that will start from a clean slate. Dems will join in!" he wrote.

White House legislative director Marc Short denied that Trump's message has been inconsistent.

"I think the president has been clear that what he wants is repeal and replace," he said, adding that the president believes that if that doesn't work, "we should at least deliver on the promise to repeal."

Short said that during the lunch, "there was a general enthusiasm for recognizing that this is not something we can walk away from."

But senators acknowledged that they still face a heavy lift.

"It is ... sort of revived," Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) said of the repeal-and-replace bill.

"I think we don't have any delusions about the fact that this is going to be very hard and we still have members who are not there yet."Three top Trump administration officials - Vice President Pence, Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Seema Verma - were scheduled to meet Wednesday evening on Capitol Hill with fence-sitting GOP senators to discuss a path forward.

McConnell repeatedly refused to say if he would cancel recess to continue work on healthcare.

HEALTH CARE BILL CUTS MANAGES MEDICAID SPENDING BUT DOESN'T KILL IT

HEALTH CARE BILL REDUCES MEDICAID SPENDING BUT DOESN'T KILL IT:

QUALITY CARE NOT WASTE AND ABUSE.

PROVIDES MORE HEALTHCARE JOBS & TRAINING.

GOP LEADERS MUST WORK TOGETHER FOR THE PEOPLE WHO ELECTED THEM.


Sources: Fox Business, Washington Times, Youtube


**** GOP Senator on Health Care Bill: Medicaid Spending Will Increase


Sen. John Thune, (R-SD), one of the senators who worked behind closed doors on the GOP health care bill, said that Medicaid spending will increase under the new bill.

"It will increase every year at the rate of inflation," Thune stated. He added that the bill aims to build upon the success of innovation already happening with respect to Medicaid.

Sen. John Thune, (R-SD), one of the senators who worked behind closed doors on the GOP health care bill, said that Medicaid spending will increase under the new bill.

"It will increase every year at the rate of inflation," Thune stated. He added that the bill aims to build upon the success of innovation already happening with respect to Medicaid.

House Speaker Paul Ryan also downplayed concerns, saying the bill must be written before it is presented.

"This shifts power, distributes power back to the states," Thune said.

The GOP bill will allow for more choices and competition, the South Dakota congressman promised.

"Too often these programs are driven out of Washington, D.C. in a one size fits all approach," Thune concluded.

Later on in the show, Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD) pushed back on Thune's claims, saying the Medicaid cuts are deeper than in the House version.

He said the bill "shifts the burden" for covering Medicaid to states, rather than providing more money for the program.

OBAMACARE - TRUMP'S NEXT HUGE FIRST TERM ACHIEVEMENT (100 DAYS)

OBAMACARE - TRUMP'S NEXT HUGE FIRST TERM ACHIEVEMENT (100 DAYS):

OBAMACARE & IMMIGRATION IS GOP'S 2020 ELECTION VICTORY PLATFORM.

CAN THE GOP SUCCEED WITHOUT LETTING DEMS DISTRACT OR SABOTAGE THEM??


Sources: Fox News, Bloomberg News, USA Today, YouTube


***** Trump optimistic as government shutdown, ObamaCare replacement loom


Fresh from a two-week Easter break, Congress hits the ground running next week -- its legislative plate more than full, and its back against the wall with the government funding clock ticking down and the resurrection of a tuned-up ObamaCare replacement bill on its agenda.

Asked late Friday if he can get it all done, an optimistic President Trump told a reporter, "We'll see what happens. No particular rush, but we'll see what happens. A lot of good things are happening. "

Those upbeat remarks -- a week before the federal government runs out of money -- stand in stark contrast to growing fears in some quarters of another government shutdown.

A key House source told Fox News that negotiations on a new spending bill are, "ongoing and progressing" and that "a government shutdown is not on the table."

Trump's Budget Director Mick Mulvaney agrees, but on Thursday he threw a wrench in the works. He told the Associated Press that Democratic negotiators need to agree to fund some of the president's top priorities, including a down payment on a border wall and hiring of additional immigration agents.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer's Communications Director, Matt House, fired back late Friday in an emailed statement: "If the administration would drop their 11th-hour demand for a wall that Democrats, and a good number of Republicans oppose, Congressional leaders could quickly reach a deal.

Asked Friday morning, after Mulvaney's remarks, whether the wall funding is a budget deal breaker, Counselor to the President Kelly Ann Conway played it safe. "I'll let the OMB [Office of Management and Budget] director and the president and others address that. We're confident that the government will not be shut down next week."

Conway’s circumspection may also stem from knowing Democrats are making their own budget demands, further risking a government shut-down.

"You have Democrats saying they want ObamaCare payments into this funding bill so Republicans are not going to like that," says Bob Cusack, managing editor of The Hill. "So there is certainly some brinksmanship going on and this is going to take some twists and turns but, at the end of the day, I think they'll get a deal done," he says.

"We boiled this thing down to something we want very badly and the democrats really don't want," Mulvaney said on Bloomberg TV. "We'd offer them $1 of CSR payments for $1 of wall payments. Right now that's the offer that we've given to our Democratic colleagues."

Adding another wrinkle to budget talks, the president wants the House to roll out the new American Health Care Act next week. It's a tuned-up version of the ObamaCare replacement that was pulled from the floor in late March, when it became clear Republicans didn’t have enough votes.

But voting on two complex pieces of legislation in a single week is extremely difficult. As an insurance policy against a government shutdown, Republicans will have a short-term continuing resolution at the ready, should it be

TRUMP'S 1st JOINT CONGRESSIONAL ADDRESS MET W/ LOUD APPROVAL (DEMS MOCK)

PRES TRUMP'S FIRST JOINT CONGRESSIONAL ADDRESS MET WITH LOUD APPROVAL:

DEMOCRATS RESPOND WITH BITTER DIATRIBES & MOCKERY.


****** HIGHLIGHTS OF TRUMP'S SPEECH WERE:

REBUILDING US MILITARY

REBUILDING THE AMERICAN DREAM

FAKE NEWS & MEDIA PROPAGANDA

TRUE UNITY

ANTI-SEMITISM

DEFEATING ISIL

CIVIL RIGHTS & SCHOOL CHOICE

REPLACING OBAMACARE WITH REAL HEALTHCARE

PAID FAMILY LEAVE & AFFORDABLE CHILDCARE

BUILDING THE GREAT WALL TO SECURE OUR BORDERS


Sources: ABC News, Fox News, Washington Post, YouTube


~ President Trump Addresses The Joint Congress


President Donald Trump delivered his first address to a joint session of Congress Tuesday night, addressing a host of familiar themes from his campaign and calling for unity to address a litany of issues that he says are plaguing the country.

Trump's call for an end to the "pure unadulterated division" and "trivial fights" comes in the wake of a bruising campaign and a tumultuous start to his presidency, squaring off against critics as well as waging a pitched battle against the media. The speech also comes amid a flurry of questions about alleged contacts between Trump associates and suspected Russian officials, which the president has derided as "fake news."

The time for small thinking is over," Trump said. "The time for trivial fights is behind us. We just need the courage to share the dreams that fill our hearts. The bravery to express the hopes that stir our souls. And the confidence to turn those hopes and those dreams into action."

Trump began the address by condemning the recent threats against Jewish centers and a suspected hate crime in Kansas. The president had drawn fire for not immediately addressing the Jewish Community Center incidents and not making public comments about the fatal Kansas shooting until tonight's speech.

"Recent threats targeting Jewish community centers and vandalism of Jewish cemeteries as well as last week's shooting in Kansas City remind us that while we may be a nation divided on policies, we are a country that stands united in condemning hate and evil in all of its very ugly forms," Trump said.

One of the most emotional moments -- and possibly the longest standing ovation of the speech -- came when Trump praised Carryn Owens, the widow of Senior Chief William "Ryan" Owens who died in a raid in Yemen. The moment has been a political hot point since Owens' father Bill Owens and Sen. John McCain criticized the president's choice to execute the mission. but Trump used the speech to call it "a highly successful raid."

During the speech, Trump revisited what he called the movement that propelled him into the White House.

"In 2016, the earth shifted beneath our feet," he said. "The rebellion started as a quiet protest, spoken by families of all colors and creeds -– families who just wanted a fair shot for their children, and a fair hearing for their concerns. But then the quiet voices became a loud chorus -- as thousands of citizens now spoke out together, from cities small and large, all across our country."

"Above all else, we will keep our promises to the American people," Trump said.

Trump ran through a series of his biggest campaign promises during much of the speech, giving updates on what he and his team plan to do about them. He talked about how "we will soon begin the construction of a great, great wall along our southern border," and later talked about plans for "a new program of national rebuilding."

His call for Congress to repeal and replace Obamacare was met with one of the loudest responses, with Republicans standing while some Democrats were seen giving a thumbs down.

He made a push for unity later in the speech, saying that "everything that is broken in our country can be fixed."

"Every problem can be solved. And every hurting family can find healing, and hope. Our citizens deserve this, and so much more – so why not join forces and finally get the job done? And get it done right. On this and so many other things, Democrats and Republicans should get together and unite for the good of our country, and for the good of the American people," he said.

Trump touched on paid family leave, the need to make childcare more affordable, an effort to promote clean air and water -- all issues that his daughter Ivanka has reportedly championed -- as areas where Republicans and Democrats could work together, along with rebuilding the military and the country's infrastructure.

He went on to call education "the civil rights issue of our time" before asking Congress to fund an education bill that allows children school choice.

"Our children will grow up in a nation of miracles. But to achieve this future, we must enrich the mind – and the souls – of every American child," he said.

While Trump did talk about his administration's plans to build a "great, great" wall, a regular theme of his campaign, he did not talk about who would pay for it; he said regularly during the campaign that Mexico would pay for the wall and he has since wavered about when and by whom those payments would be made.

First Lady Melania Trump attended the speech along with hand-picked guests, including Maureen Scalia, the widow of late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. Trump's eldest daughter, Ivanka, and her husband Jared Kushner, who is a senior advisor to the president, were also seated in the first lady's box.

A group of female House Democrats all chose to wear white in an act of support for women's rights. Their sartorial choice was particularly noticeable because they all sat together in the chamber.

On Monday, Trump's team sent out an email to supporters asking for their "input on the direction of our country" before what they called his State of the Union address.

The email called the speech "his biggest speech to date."

PRES TRUMP SIGNS EXEC ORDER TO UNRAVEL OBAMACARE'S WEB OF DECEIT

PRES TRUMP SIGNS FIRST EXEC ORDER TO UNRAVEL OBAMACARE'S WEB OF DECEIT:

TRUMP DOESN'T NEED TO DELIVER LONG LYING SPEECHES TO TAKE ACTION.

GOD BLESS AMERICA & U.S. MILITARY.


Sources: Fox News, Reuters, YouTube


**** Trump, in Oval Office, signs first executive order on Obamacare

President Donald Trump signed his first executive order on Friday in the Oval Office shortly after his inaugural parade ended, directing agencies to ease the regulatory burdens associated with Obamacare as the U.S. Congress determines how to repeal and replace the health care law.

Trump also signed the commissions for his Defense Secretary James Mattis and his Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, who were confirmed by the Senate on Friday.

White House spokesman Sean Spicer also told reporters that Trump's Chief of Staff Reince Preibus is sending a memo to agencies directing an immediate regulatory freeze.

LIFE EXPECTANCY IN USA FALLS FIRST TIME SINCE 1993 (OBAMACARE & POLICE SHOOTINGS)

LIFE EXPECTANCY IN UNITED STATES DECREASES FIRST TIME SINCE 1993 (POPULATION CONTROL)

CAN YOU SAY "OBAMACARE, GOV'T ENFORCED POLICE SHOOTINGS AND MAN MADE DISEASES"??


Sources: ABC News, Fox News, Reason, WebMD, Youtube


***** U.S. Life Expectancy Falls for First Time Since 1993

Male life expectancy dropped 0.2 of a year; female life expectancy was 0.1 of a year lower.


The National Center for Health Statistics released a startling and depressing report on life expectancy trends in the United States: Between 2014 and 2015 average American life expectancy at birth dropped to 78.8 years for the total U.S. population—a decrease of 0.1 year from 78.9 years in 2014. For males, life expectancy changed from 76.5 years in 2014 to 76.3 years in 2015—a decrease of 0.2 years, and for females, life expectancy decreased 0.1 year from 81.3 years in 2014 to 81.2 years in 2015. Since average life expectancy for Americans over age 65 remained steady at 19.4 years, the decrease is attributable to higher death rates in younger and middle-aged residents. The mortality rates in eight of the top ten leading causes of death increased, including more deaths from heart disease, accidents (including drug overdoses), strokes, Alzheimer's disease, diabetes, and suicide.

Life expectancy last declined in the U.S. in 1993, just before the advent of good treatments for HIV/AIDS. What accounts of this dismal news? Last year, Princeton University researchers Anne Case and Angus Deaton reported that mortality rates had increased for poor middle-aged white Americans, especially among those living in rural areas. Given that more Americans than ever are now covered by health insurance, what can account for this decrease in average life expectancy? The NCHS report does not speculate, but I will.

Lots of research suggests that higher mortality correlates with persistent joblessness. The civilian labor force participation ratepeaked at 67.3 percent in 2000 and has now fallen to 62.7 percent today. In June the White House issued a report that noted the alarming fall in the prime-age male labor force participation rate, from a peak of 98 percent in 1954 to 88 percent today. Specifically, the report observed that "in 1964, 98 percent of prime-age men with a college degree or more participated in the workforce, compared to 97 percent of men with a high school degree or less. In 2015, the rate for college-educated men had fallen slightly to 94 percent while the rate for men with a high school degree or less had plummeted to 83 percent." Over at the Washington Post, David Weir, director of the health and retirement study at the Institute for Social Research at the University of Michigan notes that during the past five years, improvements in death rates were among the smallest of the past four decades.

So what is responsible for decreasing average life expectancy? Demoralization among our poorest citizens.

TRUMPCARE vs OBAMACARE: (HEALTHCARE REFORM)

TRUMPCARE vs OBAMACARE: (HEALTHCARE REFORM)

DUELING HEALTH CARE PLANS

Sources:  US News & Report, Youtube

**** Donald Trump Publishes Prescription for Obamacare

Some portion of the GOP front-runner's plans are already in Obama's health care reforms.

Critics of Republican front-runner Donald Trump have said his plans to "Make America Great Again" are scant on details, but on Wednesday night he got specific about what he would do to reform health care. 

The proposals go further than promising to save people from "dying in the streets" – a phrase he has repeated often in the debates. 

On his website, he detailed his seven-point plan, which he says will broaden access, increase affordability, and improve quality. Like other Republicans, candidate Trump has consistently  vowed to "repeal Obamacare," President Barack Obama's signature health care law, but in his proposal he acknowledged that such a move would require an act of Congress. 

"On day one of the Trump Administration, we will ask Congress to immediately deliver a full repeal of Obamacare," says the proposal. Members of Congress have tried to repeal the law more than 50 times, but this January for the first time they managed to send a bill to Obama's desk, which he promptly vetoed. Though the move was expected, Republicans were sending a message to voters that if they put a Republican in the White House – and maintain their majority in Congress – then Obama' s health care law would no longer stand.   

Obamacare has several provisions written in the roughly 1,000-page law that aim to increase access to health coverage and improve the quality of care. Trump specifically said that Congress should repeal the "individual mandate," the portion of the law that requires all Americans to get health insurance or pay a tax penalty. This point represents a shift from his apparent position in a CNN town hall in February, in which Trump said he liked the mandate. 

"No person should be required to buy insurance unless he or she wants to," he said on his website. He proposed allowing people to deduct health insurance premiums from their taxes, and to sign up for tax-free Health Savings Accounts, which are meant to accumulate to cover medical expenses, and have high deductibles.

Obamacare, low- and middle-income people receive tax subsidies to help them pay for coverage. Consumers have complained that some of the plans come with high deductibles, which are aimed to encourage people to seek out care only when they need it, and to shop for medical care to find the best deals. High-deductible plans are endorsed by economists, but in the real world they have played out differently than anticipated: rather than shop for cheaper care, many patients forego it altogether. 

Echoing the importance of consumer choice in reducing the cost of care, Trump said that under his plan, doctors, clinics and hospitals would make it easier for consumers to compare prices of different procedures or exams. He did not specify, however, where and how the prices would be listed. 

Trump also proposed allowing states to sell insurance across state lines. Though touted by other Republican candidates – including Sens. Ted Cruz of Texas and Marco Rubio of Florida – the provision is already in the Affordable Care Act, but the Obama administration has not implemented it and has not announced when it would do so. 

One of the most contested parts of Obamacare has been a provision that obligates states to expand Medicaid, the government's program for low-income Americans. Even the Supreme Court ruled that states could choose whether they wanted to implement the program, and so far the District of Columbia and 31 states have done so – the rest say they are concerned about costs. 

BEN CARSON CONCEDES 2016 GOP RACE (OBAMACARE vs SLAVERY)

BEN CARSON CONCEDES 2016 GOP RACE: (OBAMACARE vs SLAVERY)

TRUMP HIGHLY RESPECTS DR CARSON'S INTELLECT.

POLITICS IS A BLOOD SPORT ONLY FOR THE RUTHLESS.

TRUMP IS HUMAN YET RUTHLESS ENOUGH TO WIN.

Sources: CNN, NY Times, Youtube

**** Ben Carson, Seeing No ‘Path Forward,’ Signals End to Bid

Ben Carson, the only Republican to have once threatened the lead of Donald J. Trump in national polls, said on Wednesday he saw no path forward and would skip a debate on Thursday in his hometown of Detroit, signaling an end to his candidacy after paltry performances in the nominating contests.

Stopping short of suspending his campaign, Mr. Carson said he would provide more details in a speech on Friday, but after his dismal showing in the Super Tuesday states, his campaign is effectively over.

A retired pediatric brain surgeon of world renown, Mr. Carson long held Republicans’ favor with an uplifting biography and a quiet manner that belied his strafing critiques of President Obama and liberalism, which delighted grass-roots conservatives.

In the end, Mr. Carson withered under mocking insults hurled at him by Mr. Trump, especially in Iowa, and he suffered from voters’ desire for a candidate projecting strength at a time of anxiety over terrorism.

“Dr. Carson’s favorability ratings have never changed,” Armstrong Williams, a close adviser, said just before the Iowa caucuses last month, when Mr. Carson finished a disappointing fourth. “But after Paris and San Bernardino, his supporters made a different decision.

They wanted a war president. Dr. Carson did not have the rhetoric or the competitiveness on the debate stage to say the explosive things, to say, ‘Let’s keep all the Muslims out.”’

Even in a year of fierce anti-establishment leanings, Mr. Carson’s months-long popularity, coupled with the prodigious support of small donors — his $20 million collected last summer led all other candidates – stunned political professionals.

Born into poverty and raised by a single mother with a third-grade education, Mr. Carson remade himself from a wayward teenager into a scholar, winning admission to Yale and medical school. 

By 33, he was the chief of a major department at Johns Hopkins Hospital. 

He burst on the political scene in 2013 when he criticized President Obama’s health care plan at the National Prayer Breakfast, a video watched over and over by delighted conservatives.

After his disappointing showing in the Iowa caucuses, Mr. Carson never seemed to regain his political footing. 

In the round of Super Tuesday contests Tuesday, his hopes for a strong performance in the South faltered, as he ran a distant fourth or fifth in every state.

“I do not see a political path forward in light of last evening’s Super Tuesday primary results,” Mr. Carson said in a statement. “However, this grassroots movement on behalf of ‘We the People’ will continue.”

“I appreciate the support, financial and otherwise, from all corners of America,” Mr. Carson said. “Gratefully, my campaign decisions are not constrained by finances; rather by what is in the best interests of the American people.”

OBAMA'S FINAL SOTU SPEECH - HE LOOKS OLDER, STILL HAS POLITICAL SWAG (VIDEO)

OBAMA'S FINAL SOTU SPEECH - HE LOOKS OLDER, STILL HAS POLITICAL SWAG: 

PAUL RYAN'S FIRST SOTU AS HOUSE SPEAKER.

~ 8 Key Quotes From Obama's 2016 State Of The Union

In his final State of the Union Address, President Obama largely avoided requests for Congress to approve specific programs, instead focusing on broad themes about America's future.

Here are eight key passages from his speech:

1. On bipartisanship

"Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the constructive approach you and the other leaders took at the end of last year to pass a budget and make tax cuts permanent for working families. So I hope we can work together this year on bipartisan priorities like criminal justice reform, and helping people who are battling prescription drug abuse. We just might surprise the cynics again."

2. On the economy

"Anyone claiming that America’s economy is in decline is peddling fiction. What is true — and the reason that a lot of Americans feel anxious — is that the economy has been changing in profound ways, changes that started long before the Great Recession hit and haven’t let up."

3. On combating cancer

"Last year, Vice President Biden said that with a new moonshot, America can cure cancer. Last month, he worked with this Congress to give scientists at the National Institutes of Health the strongest resources they’ve had in over a decade. Tonight, I’m announcing a new national effort to get it done. And because he’s gone to the mat for all of us, on so many issues over the past forty years, I’m putting Joe in charge of Mission Control."

4. On climate change

"We’ve got to accelerate the transition away from dirty energy. Rather than subsidize the past, we should invest in the future — especially in communities that rely on fossil fuels. That’s why I’m going to push to change the way we manage our oil and coal resources, so that they better reflect the costs they impose on taxpayers and our planet."

5. On U.S. strength

The United States of America is the most powerful nation on Earth. Period. It’s not even close. We spend more on our military than the next eight nations combined. Our troops are the finest fighting force in the history of the world ... when it comes to every important international issue, people of the world do not look to Beijing or Moscow to lead — they call us.

6. On the Islamic State

"As we focus on destroying ISIL, over-the-top claims that this is World War III just play into their hands. Masses of fighters on the back of pickup trucks and twisted souls plotting in apartments or garages pose an enormous danger to civilians and must be stopped. But they do not threaten our national existence. That’s the story ISIL wants to tell; that’s the kind of propaganda they use to recruit. ... We just need to call them what they are — killers and fanatics who have to be rooted out, hunted down, and destroyed."

7. On diversity

"We need to reject any politics that targets people because of race or religion. This isn’t a matter of political correctness. It’s a matter of understanding what makes us strong. The world respects us not just for our arsenal; it respects us for our diversity and our openness and the way we respect every faith."

8. On politics

"The future we want — opportunity and security for our families; a rising standard of living and a sustainable, peaceful planet for our kids — all that is within our reach. But it will only happen if we work together. It will only happen if we can have rational, constructive debates.It will only happen if we fix our politics."

Sources: PBS, USA Today, Youtube

CLIMATE CHANGE LAWS WILL DESTROY MIDDLE CLASS ON PLANET EARTH (MORE INCONVENIENT TAXES & REGULATIONS)

Global CLIMATE CHANGE Laws (new TAXES) being pushed by Pres OBAMA and other Elite world leaders will not "Save the Planet", nor "Protect the Future of our Children".

So what is the real "INCONVENIENT TRUTH" about CLIMATE CHANGE??

Is it only about reducing CARBON EMISSIONS?

These new set of Global CLIMATE CHANGE Taxes and Regulations being pushed by the Wealthy Elite, will in fact help to reconfigure Mankind on planet Earth via destroying the current Middle Class and eliminating people stuck in Poverty.

It is really all about making the Super RICH more Wealthy by creating only two Economic groups:

~ The Elite, Super Wealthy & Big Banks - LEADERS

~ A New Lower Class - WORKING SERVANTS

~ NO MORE MIDDLE CLASS



~ Climate Change Laws Hurt The Poor And Benefit No One: Why Are Political Elites Pushing So Hard?

August 21, 2015 by Bob Loewen
Bob Loewen is the chairman of the California Policy Center.

I was eighteen years old in 1966 when my plane circled the tiny airport in Ontario, California. I was traveling from the Bay Area to Claremont to begin my freshman year in college. Looking down from my window seat, the overcast cloud cover prevented me from seeing the freeways and buildings on the ground. When we landed, however, I looked up and saw a hazy blue sky. Then I realized that I was looking up through the cloud cover that I had observed from above. To my horror, what I had seen below me from the sky was not cloud cover at all; it was thick, brown smog, and I was breathing it.

That was the day I became an environmentalist. Although I have a libertarian’s skepticism of government, many times I have supported government programs to clean up the air, water, forests and beaches. In this way, I am like other Californians. Because all of us love and defend the natural resources of our state, the brand “environmentalist” is almost as popular as Santa Claus.

George Orwell warned, however, “political language . . . is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable.” [1] California’s climate change laws have nothing to do with removing smog or keeping California’s beaches clean. They hurt the poor and benefit no one. Yet a political elite has managed to impose its will on the California economy without having to explain why it has chosen to hurt the poor for no benefit to the public largely because they use the label “environmentalist”. It is time to hold them accountable.

Orwell’s warning also applies to the substance of the climate change conversation. The climate change elites do not discuss climate change issues in the manner of scientists; they collapse multiple distinct issues into demonizing rhetoric: “The science is settled,” they say in response to every argument that is made; this means that the opponent is a “science denier”. Seldom is this rhetoric even arguably responsive.

While science is one of the principal subjects of the discussion about predicting earth’s climate future through scientific computer modeling, it is no more than political rhetoric to argue that one scientist is so completely wrong in his opinion, and the other so clearly correct, that the first is “denying” the very principles of science. And this is not even the main point of this essay…

Opponents who have other reasons for their opposition to climate change laws usually do not challenge the science. Assuming the climate change outcomes have been predicted accurately by proponents, for example, opponents nevertheless contend that enforcement of climate change laws will not eliminate or delay the predicted harmful effects of climate change because reductions in GHG emissions required by California (or EPA) are more than offset by increased emissions from new power generation plants in China and India.

Opponents who make this point do not deny the science; they embrace it.

The climate change elites do not respond to this point as a distinct argument for which they are accountable; at most, they pretend that the issue does not exist, a slick move worthy of Orwell’s admonition about “political speech”.

California has the most aggressive climate change laws of any state in the nation and is the only state imposing a cap and trade protocol on emitters. It requires that GHG emissions be reduced to 1990 levels no later than 2020.

This year, new laws have been proposed to tighten that standard, requiring that 2020 emissions be reduced to 80% below 1990 levels. Other restrictions include specific requirements that specified minimum levels of wind and solar power be included in the mix of power sources.

All of this makes power in California the most expensive in the nation.

According to the Manhattan Institute, “California’s renewable energy mandates and climate change policies . . . are having a disproportionate economic impact on the poor.” [2] The report found that “in 2012, about 1 million California households were living in energy poverty, a term that applies to households that spend 10 percent, or more, of their income on household energy costs.”

There is a considerable disparity between wealthy areas, such as Mill Valley in Marin County, whose monthly energy costs were only $200 per home because of mild weather conditions, and middle-income areas, such as the town of Hanford in the San Joaquin Valley, where harsher average weather leads to average monthly energy costs of about $500 per home.

The climate change elite is leaving the poor and middle class behind in other ways too.

The Manhattan Institute study found that because of the high cost of compliance (estimated $115 billion to meet renewable requirements alone), California’s climate change laws are forcing businesses out of the state, resulting in job losses. There are also collateral effects from the general hostility of climate change elites to any business involved with fossil fuels. Take fracking, for example. Two years ago, Californians were excited about the potential for thousands of jobs when we learned that California’s shale formations are even richer than those in boom states like North Dakota. [3] A USC study predicted that fossil fuels from shale would provide “up to 2.8 million jobs, increasing the state’s total economic output by up to 14.3 percent . . . boosting personal income by up to 10 percent.” [4] Due to actions in Sacramento, nothing has happened. Why not? A public official who wants to help the poor and middle class close the economic gap has enough information to allow fracking to proceed, but for now, the political elites prefer to keep fossil fuels right where they are, embedded deep in California’s shale.

Most troubling is that the goals of climate change laws are not achieved even when they are strictly enforced. For example, the EPA is pressuring American utilities to stop using coal because it generates more GHGs than other fuel sources. India and China, however, both build coal-fired power plants faster than the United States can remove its own. [5] Eric Roston, writing for Bloomberg Business, observes “’The U.S. is dropping coal plants at an unprecedented rate, but still nowhere as quickly as India is adding them,” and “By 2020 India may have built about 2.5 times as much capacity [in coal] as the U.S. is about to lose.” [6]

China, “the world’s biggest coal addict by far,” has a plan to build hundreds of coal plants, which negates the efficacy of emissions limits imposed by political elites in this country. Eric Lawson of Princeton University, known for his strong stance in favor of the science of climate change, is quoted by Stephen Moore in Investors Business Daily: “From 2010 through 2013, (China) added half the coal generation of the entire U.S. At the peak, from 2005 through 2011, China added roughly two 600-megawatt coal plants a week for seven straight years. [7] And according to U.S. government projections, China will add yet another U.S. worth of coal plants over the next 10 years, or the equivalent of a new 600-megawatt plant every 10 days for 10 years.”

California’s climate change laws are particularly vulnerable to the criticism that they will not change the predicted outcome of man-made warming because, according to the Manhattan Institute study, all of California’s emissions are only 1% of GHG emissions worldwide and 6% of total U.S. emissions. There are no climate models that support the idea that reduction of some or all of those amounts will affect global climate change given increases of emissions in China and India.
Instead of responding directly to these criticisms, some have argued that China and India will change; if the U.S. sticks with its stringent emission reduction policies, they contend, our example will encourage them to reverse the increases in emissions that represent their recent history and turn those into reductions in emissions.

This is pure Utopian fantasy.

About 900 coal plants are currently planned in China and India.

Where is the evidence that India or China have made any plans to change these to lower-emission energy plants? What plans have been made to tear down the existing coal plants and replace them? Absent concrete plans, the follow-my-lead theory is far-fetched.

There is no precedent to suggest that follow-my-lead will succeed. There is, however, precedent suggesting it will not succeed. In California, proponents of AB32 sold the most aggressive state law on climate change in America partly on the follow-my-lead theory. They told Californians that when AB32 was enacted, other states would follow California’s example by adopting statutes similar to AB32.

This effort failed; not one state has adopted a climate change law like California’s. Since it should have been easier to convince another state, like Oregon, to join California on climate change law than to convince a sovereign nation like China, California’s experience disproves the follow-my-lead theory.

Proponents of climate change laws point to the “Joint Announcement” on climate change dated November 12, 2014 signed during President Obama’s visit to China as supposed proof that China is willing to reconsider its policy of increasing emissions.

The Joint Agreement, however, confirms that China will continue to increase its emissions through at least 2030. Much false information has been implied about this nonbinding statement. But it is available on line, and its meaning is pretty clear.

[8] China does not commit anywhere in the document to reduce its emissions; it only states, without agreeing, that it might reach a peak in its increases by 2030. By signing the Joint Agreement, President Obama effectively acknowledges that current conditions will not change before 2030 at the earliest. This means that the heavy burdens created by California’s emissions limits cannot achieve the intended benefits until sometime after that date.

These critical problems with climate change laws have been known for a long time.

Yet climate change elites do not respond to them, making it clear that they have no response that makes sense. This does not mean that nothing should be done about climate change.

But it does mean we need to change the laws that are hurting the poor and middle class, examine what is possible in the area of adaptation, and hold the political elites accountable. The future of California depends on it.

FOOTNOTES

(1) “Politics and the English Language,” George Orwell, 1946
(2) “Renewable Energy Mandates Same As A Tax On The Poor,” by Robert Bryce, Manhattan Institute, 7/26/2015
(3) “Fixing California: Will Fracking Bonanza Be Allowed?,” Chris Reed, CPC Prosperity Forum, 9/30/2013
(4) “The Monterey Shale & California’s Economic Future,” USC Price School of Public Policy, March 2013
(5) “World Falls In Love With Coal That Obama Is Waging War On,” Stephen Moore Investor’s Business Daily, 8/7/2015
(6) “The Grim Promise of India’s Coal-Powered Future,” Eric Roston, Bloomberg Business, 5/21/2015
(7) “World Falls In Love With Coal That Obama Is Waging War On,” Stephen Moore Investor’s Business Daily, 8/7/2015
(8) U.S.-China Joint Announcement on Climate Change, 11/12/2014


Sources: California Policy Center, Manhattan Institute, Fox News, YouTube, CPC Prosperity, USC Price School of Public Policy