Nancy

Documentation. Witnesses. Facts. Truth. That's what they're afraid of.

Monday, November 14, 2016

Some More on Medicare

I'm feeling a little paralyzed tonight, so I'm going to just share some reading.

Here's an update on Ryan's plans for Medicare from TPM.

My long experience with this is that members of Congress will try as hard as they possibly can not to state a position. It keeps their options open. There's safety in numbers. But that's how deeply unpopular laws get passed. People can't figure out who is doing what. A bill passes. And then it's too late. Real reporting on an issue like this means finding out where people actually stand. They will only say so if there's political pressure.
I've had a few conversations with people who say Medicare can't be repealed or privatized because people won't let it happen, and this is how it does. Congress doesn't say much so people aren't aware about what's going on.

We really need solutions, and I'm not seeing who is going to step up. All of my heroes -- Obama, Hillary, Bernie, Liz Warren -- all seem to be conciliatory towards Trump and ready to accept what happens next. Perhaps that's because there is no mechanism for stopping any of it, or because they're afraid Trump might "lock them up," or perhaps they have something up their sleeves. I just hope the best Democratic minds are working hard on this and the other disasters the Republicans have planned.

It's going to be a long four years, and we're still two months away from it.

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