ACA Repeal Stunt Amendment Fails in Senate Tonight
Today is the day that freshmen Congresspeople get *their* government-run healthcare, right?
The GOP brought up their amendment to repeal the ACA on a bill meant to reauthorize the FAA. It failed pretty spectacularly — largely because the GOP amendment didn’t propose a way to *pay* the $1+ trillion cost of repeal. It failed, because the GOP were looking to play to the cameras and the horse-race reporters who would not pay attention to the fact that 1) the new rules agreement with Reid and McConnell meant that the GOP would bring up bill amendments that were related to the bill on the floor; 2) the GOP had no intention of paying for it (do they ever?); 3) they didn’t have a *replacement* plan; and 4) they knew they didn’t have the votes. So the news will be full of this drama without any context for this bit of legislative stunt wrangling. The amendment failed 47 – 51. Barbara Milkulski gets that this was a stunt:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ne3HP2ahZwM[/youtube]
The GOP-led House repealed the ACA a couple of weeks back, and the news was full of the story of *this* stunt vote and the Democrats’ *strategy* for opposing (which, according to he media I consume, appears to be lots of personal stories).
But it took a comment I read over at Congress Matters to know about this:
A little after 5:00 p.m., House Democrats proposed that the bill be sent back to three House committees and be altered to say that the repeal of last year’s healthcare bill will not take effect until a majority of House and Senate members agree not to enroll in federal health insurance. Rep. Robert Andrews (D-N.J.) said repeal should not happen unless most members agree to abandon their own coverage.
(TPM also covered this and it may be the extent of coverage it got.)
Here is the motion that Representative Andrews made. It was defeated, 185-245 (largely on a party line vote), but how come the only place I can find anything reported on this is from a blog at The Hill or at TPM? Apparently, the only stunts that matter are the Republican ones. Even though you’d expect to see some mentions of a motion that asks the House to repeal the health coverage for themselves that they repealed for the rest of Americans. (And remember that once the ACA goes into full effect, Congress gets the same coverage offered under it.) As expected, the House Republicans (and 5 Democrats) made sure that they had all of the Government health insurance coverage they could eat, while other Americans’ needs go utterly unaddressed by the GOP’s grandstanding.
You’d think that the media would *want* and dualling stunts narrative. You’d think that the media would be eager to know what the GOP alternative is so they’d have another dualling plans narrative. You’d think that Democrats would be just everywhere talking up the sheer hypocrisy. (Except for Barbara Milkulski — more like this, please!) But what is certain is that Americans are apparently not to be told that the GOP is willing to make sure that Americans can’t have the coverage that they take as a matter of entitlement.
Thanks for wasting everyone’s time Republicans. Perhaps they’ll finally get to some job creation bills.
The media does want to appear “liberal” by acknowledging that there are two parties in Congress. Did you see the breakdown of media coverage of judicial rulings that affirm the constitutionality of the ACA, vs. coverage rulings that challenge the constitutionality of the ACA?
Totally ‘effed up. Matt Drudge is DC’s assignment editor.
I blame Carter.
Better headline — DEMOCRATS REFUSE TO REPEAL UNCONSTITUTIONAL LAW
But then again, have you guys never bothered to repeal your party’s Jim Crow or school segregation laws, either.
And if you want to discuss hypocrisy, how many of you kept the money you saved in taxes because of the “Bush tax cuts for the wealthy”?
So now LBJ is a Republican. Another victim of the homeschool movement.
JA, you’re beginning to piss me off
Calm down, JC. Joe American is another right-wing trained seal. You wouldn’t get angry at a dumb animal for performing stunts its trainer taught it, would you?
JA is the LAST desperate GASP of the white Texans about to be overtaken and disenfranchised by the TRUE founders, the TEXICANS.
The Spanish and Mexican Americans.
When that happens, the state will become a Democratic stronghold. He’ll have to move to Arizona or Idaho or some other fascist leaning state.
733 Obamacare waivers given so far…
why sould anyone want a waiver from the Dear Leader’s glorious plan?
because FauX News has convinced them that it is better to die sick and poor than accept help from the gumment…. and under NO circumstances should other poor people be helped….. ever.
Perhaps you’d like to read why — exactly — these waivers are being given.
Pretty clear, I think, if in fact, you CAN read.
But this stupid deflection doesn’t take away from the fact that the repub effort to repeal the ACA is a stunt and took time away from work that Congress could be doing to help create some much needed jobs.
Please educate yourself about waivers. Thank you.
Shouldn’t the headline be:
Corporate Mercenaries Protecting Profits Fail
Gotta love taking trolls to school!
Hell, I’m still trying to understand why it’s ‘hypocritical’ to keep the bush tax cuts!
These people make no sense!
they think all liberals are 300k a year new englanders who go to “small town america” and force gay pride parades… doesnt anyone here watch Fox News….. know thy enemy.
Hell, I’m still trying to understand why it’s ‘hypocritical’ to keep the bush tax cuts!
click the link on my moniker…
I take it, then, that none of you gave back the proceeds of the Bush (now Bush/Obama) “tax cuts for the rich” that you received — unless I missed one of you documenting your return of those ill-gotten gains to the US Treasury.
And Joe has been here under enough sockpuppets to know that the diversionary bullshit that is supposed to pass for argument that he likes to indulge in doesn’t pass muster here. The subject is the ACA, yes? Get on it or get gone.
yeah, this guy seems to think everyone here fought for tax hikes on ourselves and take the money we didnt want.
Joe, the tax cuts you are accusing us of getting only were to go to the richest americans who are the reason the middle class (who needs the tax cuts WE got) is in such a mess. You are defending the people who made your beloved free market LESS free and rigged the game to get rich while most of the country got screwed. I think the only reasons you could possible have for defending their ill-gotten wealth is that you are on of them, or plan to someday be rich at other’s expense and dont want to seem like a hypocrite? sounds crazy, but you do sound like a Beckbot so who knows. You just blather nonsensical insulting crap about “liberals” and “dear leader” without ever backing up your arguments with anything other than right wing talking points. The most insane part is you know most people in this forum just laugh at you, yet you keep doing it.
”
ya know billy, there are 3 types of people in the world…..”
Odd — I thought the argument was HYPOCRISY, based upon teh VERY FIRST LINE of your post, cassie. If you don’t want it discussed, don’t put it in — and if you put it in, at least have the integrity to allow it to be discussed.
Ben, Joe America will never be “one of them.”
The argument is hypocrisy about the ACA — is your reading comprehension this bad? Get on topic or get gone, sockpuppet. You will not get another warning.
are there actually people who’s idea of a fun time is to try and get thrown out of a blog? It’s like drunk Eagles fans at away games but much much sadder.
Some (most) off the Republucan commenters here are simply too stupid to reply to. I fall into the error of replying to the stupidity once in a while, but it is really not worth it.
I hear ya. It gets tiring watching the same stupidity over and over again — this sockpuppet never learns a lesson.
WELL, poor Joe, yes, Texas has gained seats due to the census – however his red state is about to go blue –
the gain is in the Latino population – up 55%
and republicans have NOT endeared themselves to this demographic
same with AZ too
He might be safe in Idaho – or maybe Alaska???
Did you see where Texas is such an effed up wingnut banana republic now that they have to buy electricity from Mexico?