From the Times article after the big WH East Room meeting today with Trump and Republican Senators:
âWhen asked by reporters clustered on the blacktop outside the West Wing if Mr. Trump had command of the details of the negotiations, Mr. McConnell ignored the question and smiled blandly.â
That just about sums up the entire Trump presidency to date on every issue, and as far as anyone can see into the future.
Absolutely, and what is the lesson: there is no compromising with the GOP, and avoid putting out GOP light policy so they will like you, because they wonât.
Warren came out today and said that Democratic Congress members should all vociferously support and promote single payer, and the leadership in the party and many members gave a collective, âmehâ. And that is why the Democratic Party sucks.
Because of many factors, some related to him and some related to a stacked deck. And boy did it work out great in the general (and yes I supported Clinton and voted for her). I know, I know, Clinton was perfect and it was all because of Sanders and Putin and all those hillbillies. Plus it was so helpful for you guys to dismiss all the âBernie Brosâ as farting-unicorn chasers. Almost as useful as it is for you to keep doing so now. Wouldnât want to waste time coming together when itâs so much more satisfying to keep lobbing one liners at people who are largely allies but have some different ideas than you do.
Adulation at the altar applies a lot better to some folks here in re to Clinton than it does to me in re to Sanders. I donât claim heâs perfect or demonize her. But some posters here at TPM do the reverse repeatedly. If you think itâs useful, knock yourself out. But it doesnât help the party, or anybody else, one bit.
If he wasnât a leader I wouldnât know jack shit about him.
Heâs your Senator so you probably know more than you care to.
I doubt very many of the Repubs really want to go down this repeal and kill road but they too must to get to phases 2 and 3.
These pols, the insurers and the drug companies are some heartless people.
How can they weigh tens of millions of human lives against anything, it just should be a non-starter from the beginning.
Tell it to the judge.
Just out of curiosity, how many repeal votes is that now?
70 some Iâm thinking.
It would be bad.
Hahahaha. Iâll tell you what, Pat-- itâs not good or bad! Itâs curtains.
Heard trump say on NPR this afternoon that he was sitting next to Murkowski and as an example of how the ACA was failing claimed that Alaskans policies are going up 200% without the slightest bit of acknowledgement that our premiums will go up even higher, much higher under the Senate/house plan. I do hope that once the buffoon left the podium that she had the courage to correct him on that statement but Iâm not gonna hold my breath on it.
Hereâs a question I posed to Josh, Neera Tanden, Joy Reid and Jacki Schechner (@jackischechner) on Twitter: âis this the moment Schumer/Pelosi should come out w/alt-Dem plan to FIX ACA?â
Hereâs Jackiâs response: âWonât matter. Would need #GOP votes and they wonât get them, no matter how reasonable the plan.â
But I wonderâŚ
There can be no principle of âright to lifeâ â as espoused by the conservative movement, the Republican Party, and the Bible â without universal health care.
Contact her office. That kind of stuff cannot go unchecked. You are her constituent and you know what the real story is. Trump is not her constituent.
Will call again in the morning. Been reminding her and Sullivan that we out here are paying attention and know that Alaska will get hit much harder than any other state. They could have fixed many of their complaints against the ACA by now and been recognized for it but ideology trumped doing what was best for their constituents and their party.
Entirely too safe, too late. But my Senator Rob Portman and Shelley Caputo totally sodomised the band wagon by âopposing the current draftâ of the Senate Trumpcare bill. Whateves 
The ironic thing is, on these things, the positions of the two parties have reversed. In the 1800s it was the Republicans who were the former, and the Democrats who were the latter. What hasnât changed is that Republicans have always represented the moneyed interests, and Democrats have represented the workers. What changed is that those groups changed what they in favor of.
John Boehner awhile back suggested the answer which is now being put out there by oppponents of the repeal. FORGET the stupid tax cut for the GOPerâs. FIX the complaints and issues about Obamacare that have been complained about the last few years. FIX OBAMACARE name it Trumpcare and tada⌠You have a better healthcare bill.
I am not holding my breath. Personally I hope they pass this piece of chit bill and let the ramifications flow through the system. Many many Trump voters will be hurt by this GOP health bill and I say GOOD!!! Everyday a Trump voter dies is a great day for America.
Iâll be interested to see where Ted Cruz ends up. If I had to choose Iâd bet he ends up for it, but I can easily see him doing the devious calculations in his head:
This shitburger is so incredibly unpopular that it will be a slaughter for Republicans in 2018 if it passes.
He would get to show himself as bravely standing up against Mitch McConnell (which heâs already done before, and made a lot of hay out of).
He would also be taking a huge dump on Trump, as revenge for the primary.
He can go back to Texas and crow about how all of this would be in the name of his supposed deeply-held conservative principles where Obamacare has to be repealed completely, giving him cred against a primary challenger.
Iâm not saying itâs going to happen. But itâs a definite possibility IMO.
But it was all good when idiots carrying rifles protested Obama and other Democrats. That wasnât at all uncivilized or mean. It was all good when people posted insulting, racist cartoons of the Obamas. That wasnât at all uncivilized or mean. It was all good when people quoted Bible verses praying for Obamaâs assassination. That wasnât at all uncivilized or mean. Republican politicians make me want to vomit repeatedly.
They wonât get the votes but, iâm not sure if it matters or not. On the one hand Dems coming out with their own plan could detract/obscure the AHCA crap and allow the Repubs to sneak it through. On the other hand having a better alternative, one that the Repubs wonât even look at could be used to give the people something to fight for. Honestly, donât know whatâs the right play