Much madness is divinest sense, to a discerning eye. Or perhaps I should say "infernal" sense, in this case. It still scans.

The worse off the rural base is, the angrier they are. And the angrier they are, the easier it is to get them out to vote every two years.

They will pass *something* called a "repeal of Obamacare". It will increase the deficit. It will shift the tax burden toward the poor. It will reward the well-connected. It won't reward efficiency.

Beyond that, all details are up for negotiation. There's a lot of money involved in healthcare, and everyone rich enough to afford a top-tier lobbyist will want a piece of it. A "clean repeal" never had a chance.

The only way I would change it is in emphasis: "They will pass something called a "repeal of Obamacare."

Rural voters are going to suffer from cuts to Agriculture. Manufacturing workers who have seen their jobs disappear are going to see help getting retrained into new skills disappear with the cuts to the Dept. of Labor. Rural roads are more expensive per person/mile than urban roads, so cuts to the Dept. of Transportation will disproportionately impact 45's strongest base.

No number of new soldiers and border barriers are going to improve red state schools, improve the health of seniors or convince hard-headed CEOs to invest in depressed areas.

Madness. There was a conspiracy theory that 45 was a Democrat implant to destroy the Republican Party from the inside - the tin-foil hat crowd who believe this are only going to get more excitable from the healthcare plan and budget fiascoes.

That'll result in President Lyin' Ryan running our country... Which honestly scares me more than the thought of Pres. Pence does.

The thing is that this administration is ripe for the picking ... it wouldn't take much to bring it down. Not that the intel community would take it over. The vice president would have to keep his hands clean if he is to head up the new admin.

well, it depends on what we mean by intelligence and what we mean by coup. a takeover of the federal government by its spies doesn't seem like such a good idea. however, a major accomplishment on behalf of not being stupid would be most welcome.

JL

Of course, I know there are some who would strenuously disagree with that, if they cared enough to expend the energy. ;)

http://news.wgbh.org/2017/03/15/politics-government/major-new-study-shows-political-polarization-mainly-right-wing

Tucker Carlson points out that working-class areas that voted for Trump would be hurt far more by his health care bill than more affluent areas. Trump's response? "I know, I know."

A confession.

So Trump never was their voice. Who knew?

The Orange Queen claims to be the Best Dealmaker in the known universe. Leadership should not even be necessary.

Headline is: Trump's Base Will Be Screwed by His Health Care Bill. Trump Says He Knows That.

Did you catch all that? Tucker Carlson points out that working-class areas that voted for Trump would be hurt far more by his health care bill than more affluent areas. Trump's response? "I know, I know." Then Carlson says that seems inconsistent with Trump's campaign message. Trump's response? "A lot of things aren't consistent."

Trump spends the rest of the time whining about the GOP's thin majority in the Senate and the fact that Democrats won't vote for his bill because they're selfish and stupid.

The Orange Man exudes "leadership" doesn't he?

there has to be a joke in there somewhere...

JL

There is a Harvard study from 2013... before some of the provisions in the ACA kicked in.

Comments 18 and 19 show the problem continues, but estimates are all over the place... 500,000 to 2 million.

These articles are depressing, but I may look for more later.

A

http://kff.org/private-insurance/report/medical-debt-among-people-with-health-insurance/

A

https://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/06/upshot/lost-jobs-houses-savings-even-insured-often-face-crushing-medical-debt.html?_r=0

A

Your wish is my command-

http://amjmed.org/under-aca-medical-bankruptcy-continues/

This is more of a background article.

What I have gleaned from other articles thus far-

Apparently, different studies use different methods to calculate medical related bankruptcies.
Some use estimates based on the public bankruptcy filings, others include a portion of the filings caused by job losses due to medical issues.

More to come.

A

What percentage of the federal budget today goes to the State Department?

No, mercifully.

http://www.wildalaskaseafood.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/sole-flounder-alaska-whitefish.jpg

It's gilded!

Brutal:

Agency / Date / Approve / Disapprove / Net

Rasmussen Reports 3/14 45 54 -9
Rasmussen Reports 3/07 49 51 -2
Rasmussen Reports 2/28 50 50 Tie
Rasmussen Reports 2/21 51 49 2
Rasmussen Reports 2/14 53 47 6
Rasmussen Reports 2/07 53 47 6
Rasmussen Reports 1/31 53 47 6
Rasmussen Reports 1/24 57 43 14

With an idiot in charge of the launch codes, now is not the time for a repeat of Orson Welles "War of the Worlds"-like broadcast.

http://www.biography.com/news/orson-welles-war-of-the-worlds-radio-broadcast-video

I don't understand why Obama and Biden aren't stepping up and speaking out on this and other issues.

So EM, did you not yet see your guy's speech at SXSW a few days ago about fighting cancer?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVCUog37r3o

First get a hanky. :)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpyidroM9XA

But, but, but... I saw it on Fox.
__________

CARLSON: Why not wait to tweet about it until you can prove it? Don't you devalue your words when you can't provide evidence?

TRUMP: Because, well, because The New York Times wrote about it. You know, not that I respect the New York Times, I call it the failing New York Times, but they did write on January 20th, using the word "wiretap." Other people have come out with --

CARLSON: Right, but you are the president. You have the ability to gather all the evidence you want.

TRUMP: I do, I do, but I think that frankly, we have a lot right now, and I think if you watch -- if you watched the Bret Baier and what he was saying and what he was talking about and how he mentioned the word wiretap, you would feel very confident that you could mention the name.
__________

Thus Trump inadvertently confesses he heard some people say "wiretap" so he put out several tweets disparaging the previous President of the United States as "sick" and accusing him of committing a crime... with no supporting evidence whatsoever.

This is the reasoning of the guy with the nuclear launch codes.

:-(

A wise analyst once said that if Obamacare dies under the watch of this administration, it won't have died of natural causes, it will have been murdered. And, the culprits are many and come from both sides of the aisle, to one degree or another.