Careful what you wish for, boys.
“Who’s on first. What’s on second.” “I don’t know!” “Third base.” abbot and Costello
It’s little wonder that President Trump is sarcastically referred to as The Pampers President, since these days being a Republican seems to entail acting like a two year old. Meaning, they spend all day screaming for something, and when Mama finally gives it to them, they throw it in the corner, and scream for something else instead.
The GOP spent 8 years running monolithically on repealing the scourge of the American healthcare system, the Affordable Care Act, with its dreaded “death panels.” But now, fueled by a DOJ decision not to defend the law in court in a lawsuit, the GOP is approaching an even money that they finally get their wish. And instead of celebrating, the GOP is freaking out like a teen whose parents return hoe early to a toga party in the living room.
Back in March, jealous of the Democratic success on running on healthcare in 2018, and fearful of what it could portend in 2020, Trump once again raised the Ghost of Stupid Past, proudly proclaiming that the GOP would once again be re-branded as “the party of healthcare,” by passing a massive reform bill that would be , “bigger, better, and cheaper.” It too Senate Majority Leader Yertl McTurtle all of about 30 seconds to piss in that punch bowl by proclaiming that the Senate had no intention of even considering any significant healthcare legislation ahead of the 2020 election.
That was back in March, when the lawsuit was still widely seen as a long shot Hail Mary pass. But now, with the suit apparently steaming towards a showdown in the Supreme Court, with the reel specter that “Brewski” Brett Kavanaugh may finally pay dividends, the GOP is in a panic. Up until now, on more “socially” related issues, Chief Justice John Roberts has reluctantly sided with the liberals on the court, providing a speed brake on Kavanaugh. But on this issue, which could be repaired legislatively, it is possible that Roberts may finally decide to let Trump pay the piper for his craven stupidity.
Now senior Senate Republicans are reacting like a drunk from Topeka who suddenly wakes up in cheap motel room in Sao Paolo. GOP Senator Lamar Alexander, who is copping a life raft off of the Trump death cruise next November is even talking about the possibility of reforming healthcare costs, and even Mitch McConnell is trading in his rendition of “Na-na-na-na,Hey,hey! Goodbye!” for a rousing chorus of “Kumbaya.”
“I think the important thing for the public to know is there’s nobody in the Senate not in favor of covering pre-existing conditions. We would act quickly on a bipartisan basis to restore” those protections if struck down by the courts
Every husband who has ever had a wife bitch him out about his gambling knows that this is exactly what she sounds like when he comes home and proudly displays the ten grand he just made at the track. The first thing he’s gonna have to spring for is a neck brace for her sudden case of whiplash. Such it is now for McConnell.
Forget Trump, this is a nightmare scenario for the GOP, and a shining testament to their own stupidity. They ran for 8 years on repealing Obamacare without attempting to craft a serious replacement for the popular bits, simply because they knew it was all bullshit, Obama would never sign the repeal bill. When they finally did pass a bill with a GOP President to sign it, John McCain had to save them from their own folly. And then they doubled down on their stupidity by openly backing a lawsuit that would nullify the ACA, thinking it had no real chance to succeed, only to find it suddenly out in front coming out of the far turn and heading for home.
The GOP is now caught between a rock, and a very hard ‘nother rock. They can’t pass a comprehensive replacement to the popular components of the ACA because, A) they don’t know how, B) they don’t care how, and C) anything plausible would cost their insurance lobby overlords big buckaroos, which is intolerable.Anything they pass will be purely partisan, because it won’t actually fix the problem, cost more, and still boot people from their coverage.
Normally this wouldn’t be a problem, since the GOP Senate would just pass a piece of shit bill, and when it failed miserably in the House, blame the Democrats for costing people their healthcare. That won’t work this time, since the Democrats will simply gleefully point out that none of this would have happened if Trump and the Republicans hadn’t torpedoed the ACA in the first friggin’ place!
Here;s a perfect example of the jeopardy Republicans suddenly find themselves in. Currently, Mitch McConnell has a 32% approval rate in his home state of Kentucky, and he’s facing a tough reelection campaign in 2020. Right now, a whole bunch of his constituents, mostly Republican since it’s a red state, have insurance provided by KYnect, which a lot of them don’t even realize is the Kentucky state name for the ACA. Those people will lose their coverage if the ACA is repealed, and not successfully replaced, and Democratic challenger Amy McGrath will be more than happy to tell them exactly who they can thank.
This has the potential to be absolutely catastrophic for the GOP heading into 2020, for the simple reason that almost all, if not all of the Democratic 2020 presidential candidates are pushing one form or another of universal healthcare coverage, whether Medicare-for-all or a public option. If the lawsuit succeeds, the GOP risks handing the Democrats up to 20 million votes, many of Republican voters, because their healthcare is now gone, and the Democrats plan, whatever it is, is now the only way to replace it.
I am so loving this! The old caveat is “Be careful what you wish for,” and the GOP may well be on the verge of learning that lesson the hard way. They may be about to culminate their 10 yer wet dream, only to wake up and discover that they’re stuck with what they detested the most all of that time, universal healthcare coverage under a Democratic plan. God, I love it when they eat their young!
Cross posted on Politizoom.com
