So far All Talk and no action. the Dems are totally ineffective until they can prove otherwise. In so far as the rethugs coming to the table with “Clean Hands”, they are the zenith of Lady Macbeth, “Out damned spot”
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Trump isn’t President yet.
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Repairing this nation’s infrastructure is not an expense; it’s an investment that will fully pay for itself many time over. The best example I can give is that of the interstate highway system. That ‘investment’ has paid for itself twenty times over. Calling building and upgrading infrastructure an expense is = to saying buying Apple stock twenty years ago was an expense. The same goes for health care. Having a populace that is as healthy as we can make it is in the best economic interest of the country. I will add that, to keep our democracy healthy and vibrant we must make certain that every citizen who is eligible be able to vote without interference from state and local laws.
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He is, but I wish they had a plan to get grass roots involved to put pressure on the republicans to prevent repeal. ‘rue the day’ is so last century. Let’s get proactive.
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How about Medicare? Are the Republicans going to slice it up with a thousand cuts? Will Democrats stop them?
The project to build the infrastructure is a great idea…actually long overdue. The boondoggle is how he is proposing to finance it…by privatization and tax credits.
From Ron Klain’s article linked a few posts upthread:
Trump’s plan is not really an infrastructure plan. It’s a tax-cut plan for utility-industry and construction-sector investors, and a massive corporate welfare plan for contractors. The Trump plan doesn’t directly fund new roads, bridges, water systems or airports, as did Hillary Clinton’s 2016 infrastructure proposal. Instead, Trump’s plan provides tax breaks to private-sector investors who back profitable construction projects. These projects (such as electrical grid modernization or energy pipeline expansion) might already be planned or even underway. There’s no requirement that the tax breaks be used for incremental or otherwise expanded construction efforts; they could all go just to fatten the pockets of investors in previously planned projects.
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Correct, but too complex to be huge talking point. 90% of Americans simply won’t understand what “extending the solvency of Medicare” means, and if they do, they’ll think it’s just more bureaucracy. The days of standing for an efficient and just bureaucracy are over, however much it might appeal to a college-educated liberals over the age of 40.
Here’s a platform for Schumer that everyone will understand; is substantively liberal and meritorious; and would represent the bus stopping, turning round, and running over the dog:
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Republicans want to get rid of Medicare. No more free healthcare for people over 65.
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Democrats want to extend Medicare to people aged 55 and over and will propose a Bill to that effect.
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Democrats want to propose the Anti-Corruption Bill, which makes it compulsory for anyone running for, or serving as, President, member of congress, or member of the administration to disclose (1) tax returns for the last 10 years; (2) all current business obligations and debts; (3) all connections to lobbying firms; (4) all financial transactions above a certain value involving charitable foundations, corporations, immediate family members, and other entities within the control or undue influence of the candidate/office-holder.
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Democrats will propose the Fair Tax Act, which will (1) cap the amount of tax deductions available to the rich to ensure that a minimum of 30% tax and maximum of 49% is paid by everyone on income above $250,000. Income will be broadly defined to ensure that rich individuals cannot treat foundations or corporations under their control as piggy banks.
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Democrats will support the infrastructure spending but will oppose the bankruptcy of the nation as if it were a Trump casino. Bankruptcy avoidance means that the Fair Tax Act, or similar legislation ensuring that the very rich pay their fair share towards the infrastructure costs.
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Yeah, it’s amazing what 30+ yrs of undermining public education in the USA will get ya’
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The “clean hands” line is just too timid. The Republican have stolen a Justice.
And am I the only one who’s furious with RBG? She couldn’t just retire at the age of 80, for chrissakes? Repeat, eighty.
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That requires being a majority in the Senate and House. The DNC would have to dump the corporatists and embrace BERNIE for that to happen.
Not mentioned: All the new roads will be toll private toll roads. Gotta have that revenue stream for those foreign investors. Until the revenue stream isn’t satisfactory for the investors and they bail on the whole thing, the way a Spanish consortium did with a toll road in Texas. They also cut corners and didn’t build the substructure correctly, so the road deteriorated.
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Both Medicare AND Social Security are “seniors’ issues,” Victor.
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I keep being reminded of Neal Stephenson’s novel Snow Crash. I’m convinced that’s where we’re headed.
Really? Look at Kentucky where Bevin shut down Kynect. How did Kentucky voters react? Well, Trump got a lot more votes than Bevin. Kentucky showed that they will gladly give up their health care to stop gays and lesbians from getting married!
They lose their health care, but they done got Jesus!
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I think Schumer is right on Obamacare. When we were nasty teen-agers, there was a response often given to the taunts of a bully. “Do it and then talk about it.” I don’t think they will do it, but if they do, it will be fatal to their House majority.
Schumer…remember please that Paul Ryan is desperate to kill Medicare. Now, it will piss off a lotta voters but many of those of us using it cannot afford to lose it. nor should those who will need it in coming decades.
It should be funded not just by contributions by all of us out of our paychecks but also by a grateful government for the efforts of the American worker who makes things, builds the country and votes for our members of Congress. It’s the least you politicians should do. Without us you would be nothing. The same rational should be applied to Social Security.
Remember Chuck, without our votes members of Congress would be nothing.
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Exactly this. I still contend we mostly have a communication problem. We have the right ideas and policies, they’re just not reaching the right people. Conservatives have an entire media establishment (Limbaugh, Infowars, Breitbart, etc.) that feeds into the mainstream news sources that are largely conservative as well (Fox News, all morning shows, all but one prime time block, etc.) so it’s going to take non-stop visibility by all Democrats to get our message across.
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Schumer is wrong on one point. Trump CAN pick off certain parts and still make the numbers work. That’s because Ryan and Trump are con men. The numbers do not have to add up. They can fudge them, they can fake them, they can make up some tax credit plan that simply obscures the real costs. Anyone who criticizes them will be called “very unfair.” Let the great kleptocracy begin.
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So dynamic scoring will rear it’s ugly head?
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Schumer…that’s all I need to here to stop listening. Fuck him.
All you have to do is read the water. Trump’s walked back most of the nut of his campaign. No wall…maybe a fence. Probably not even a fence. Not going to spend time making Mexico pay for shit. 2 to 3 million deportations not the 11 million or more he promised. May even work out citizenship deals since Big Agriculture’s pissed off. Not draining the swamp. He’s repopulating it with creatures worse than he bitched about. Not working on bringing jobs back to the USA. At the very moment he’s working on creating them in India.
On ACA. When there was a POTUS sure to veto repeal legislation Congress sent that crap to the White House daily. Now there’s one dumb enough to sign it so the water’s changed. “it may take years to replace O’care…so repeal will have to wait” the GOP’ers now say. If Schumer’s dumb enough to think the GOP wasn’t on to the political consequence of actual repeal long before his sell out ass came on the scene he’s a lot dumber than I thought. Newt said it best " a campaign device". that’s what Repeal and replace is about. Gin up the rubes.They’re dumb enough to buy it. But they’re not dumb enough to feel the pain of actual repeal and not know who did it to them.
One of the biggest lines of attack on Trump, coming from Trumper’s in the next year will be his failure to live up to any of his bullshit. No jobs are coming back. He can’t make them. Coal is dead and it’s going to stay that way. ISIS is probably going to be emboldened by his election. They’ve said as much. He’s not going to do shit to ISIS that’s not already being done. If he tries to get his lame Tax cuts he’s in for a surprise. They’re budget busters and the GOP’ers in Congress aren’t going to go along with them. Maybe the Estate tax which if played right will piss off the blue collar folks that voted for him. Bubba isn’t going to see the prosperity Trump promised and he’s not going to see the hurt he promised to inflict on others.
ACA is going to stay. Despite Schumer’s plagiarizing Eisenhower.
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