Pugster
Pugster's JournalSenator Claire McCaskill: "if a single-payer came up to a vote right now I would not vote for it"
This is the disappointing view of Senator Claire McCaskill of Missouri:
Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.), who like most Democrats voted “present” on the GOP amendment, also told constituents she would not support a single-payer proposal.
“I’m going to disappoint a lot of you. ... I would say if a single-payer came up to a vote right now I would not vote for it,” McCaskill, who is up for reelection next year, told constituents during a town hall earlier this year.
McCaskill added she would support allowing individuals who only have one option on the ObamaCare exchanges to buy into Medicare or Medicaid instead.
http://thehill.com/homenews/senate/347175-democrats-prep-for-next-round-of-healthcare-fight
CNN: Single Payer "has virtually no chance of passage in a Republican-controlled Senate"
The biggest challenge faced by the single Payer health system is this :
Sanders has said he plans to introduce the bill later this month. The legislation, however, has virtually no chance of passage in a Republican-controlled Senate
http://www.cnn.com/2017/09/08/politics/elizabeth-warren-medicare-for-all/index.html
We should keep trying though, until we control 60 Senate seats, provided that all Democratic senators are on board.
"bound to no party"? The least pro-Trump Republican Senator sides with him 80% of the time
Regarding this new New-York-Times-fueled narrative that Donald Trump is a "man bound to no party" and an independent maverick...
Susan Collins is the Republican Senator who votes opposite Trump's wishes, and she still agrees with him 80% of the time:
https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/congress-trump-score/
Among the journalists promoting the Trump-is-an-independent theory are @peterbakernyt and @MaggieNYT
Subpoenas likely if Facebook resists Russia inquiries
Source: Mcclatchy Newspapers
The discovery that a Russian company bought election-related Facebook ads in last year’s presidential race opens new avenues for Justice Department and congressional investigators and likely will lead to subpoenas for confidential records of social media advertisers, former prosecutors say.
Facebook’s disclosure, which a key Senate Democrat called “the tip of the iceberg,” appears to show that Russians searching for ways to harm Democrat Hillary Clinton’s presidential prospects broke criminal laws barring foreigners from attempting to influence U.S. elections.
The findings could ease investigators’ efforts to win Facebook’s voluntary release of records showing whether Russian intelligence agencies went even further to boost Donald Trump’s chances – by buying far more ads with much stealthier methods than the easily traceable $150,000 in purchases that the company divulged on Wednesday.
Read more: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/nation-world/national/article171941467.html#storylink=mainstage
Senate approves deal to lift debt ceiling 3 months, sends hurricane relief funds
Source: CNN
The Senate approved Thursday a package of bills that paired emergency funding for hurricane relief with measures that would raise the debt ceiling and keep the government open for three months.
The vote was 80-17. All 17 nos were Republicans.
The legislation now goes to the House, which could vote as early as Thursday night.
President Donald Trump, in a surprising move, signed onto the package Wednesday, siding with Democrats who proposed bundling the bills together but only with a three-month extension for the debt ceiling. Republican leaders had sought a debt limit increase for as long as 18 months.
Read more: http://www.cnn.com/2017/09/07/politics/senate-vote-debt-ceiling-hurricane-relief-funding/index.html
This tells Trump that he can only win if he partners with Democrats.
Good.
Democrat Heitkamp Says Shes Curious About Trumps Tax Plan, Gets Ride on Air Force One
Source: New York Magazine
A Democratic senator has figured out how to ward off the worst of President Trump’s bipartisan attacks on members of Congress – for now, at least.
Senator Heidi Heitkamp will become the first Democratic lawmakers to fly with Trump on Air Force One on Wednesday when she accompanies him to her home state of North Dakota. Trump is hoping to woo Heitkamp into supporting his tax reform plan, and the White House is plugging her presence as the first sign of bipartisan support for overhauling the tax code.
But Heitkamp hasn’t actually backed Trump’s tax reform plan. She told reporters she’s against some rumored proposals, like taxing 401(k) plans, but she’s been in touch with administration officials and wants to hear more.
“We’ve always said that we’re interested in tax reform,” Heitkamp said. “I continue to be curious about what the actual plan is.”
Read more: http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2017/09/democrat-is-open-to-trump-tax-plan-gets-air-force-one-ride.html
What are the odds of Congress making DACA a law?
I assume that support from the Democrats will be a hundred percent or so in both Chambers. But are there enough Republicans for a majority?
At least 22 confirmed dead from Harvey as Houston mayor imposes a nightly curfew
Source: MSN
The biggest rainstorm in the history of the continental United States finally began to move away from Houston on Tuesday, as the remnants of Hurricane Harvey and its endless, merciless rain bands spun east to menace Louisiana instead.
But, after more than 50 inches of rain over four days, Houston was less of a city and more of an archipelago: a chain of urbanized islands in a muddy brown sea. All around it, flat-bottomed boats and helicopters were still plucking victims from rooftops, and water was still pouring in from overfilled reservoirs and swollen rivers.
Between 25 and 30 percent of Harris County — home to 4.5 million people in Houston and its near suburbs — was flooded by Tuesday afternoon, according to an estimate from Jeff Lindner, a meteorologist with the county flood control district. That’s at least 444 square miles, an area six times the size of the District of Columbia.
Read more: http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/at-least-22-confirmed-dead-from-harvey-as-houston-mayor-imposes-a-nightly-curfew/ar-AAqVd3k
Family of six counted among the dead as Harvey death toll rises to 14
Source: Fox News
A family of six trying to escape the floodwaters produced by Harvey has been counted among the 14 victims who died in the historic storm, authorities said.
The four children and their great-grandparents died Sunday afternoon when Samuel Saldivar, the driver of the van, attempted to pick them up amid the flooding, his sister-in-law Virginia Saldivar told the Associated Press. At one point, a strong current swept the van away and into the Greens Bayou.
"Sam calls my husband and tells him, 'they're gone,'" Saldivar said. "That's when my husband dropped the phone and started screaming."
The driver – the children’s great-uncle – managed to escape. He told everyone to get out of the van using the back door, but the van quickly sank, KHOU reported.
Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2017/08/29/family-six-counted-among-dead-as-harvey-death-toll-rises-to-14.amp.html
I have a feeling there are lot of bodies still in the water.
As 30-40 go missing in just one county, Trump says it's all "going well"
Donald Trump just tweeted that it's all going well.
But 5 are confirmed dead even though it's be hard to count the dead yet, and 30-40 people are missing in Port Aransas alone.
https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/901797906046439426
https://twitter.com/USATODAY/status/901621801289056256
Heck of a job, me!
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Member since: Thu Aug 17, 2017, 10:11 AMNumber of posts: 229
