Careful what you wish for, boys.

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“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!

 

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1 COMMENT

  1. Spot on! One has to almost hope for the ACA to be struck down by the same court that those f*ckers loaded with judges who no longer have anything in common with the vast majority of Americans. The Republican Party has systematically destroyed their own talking points with their support of Trump. They can’t claim to be defenders of the Constitution or law & order. Their platforms will be abject racism, bigotry, misogyny, xenophobia, deficit boosters and proud supporters of sexual assault & other sexual perversions.

    Man, I can’t wait to get me one of them 2020 T-shirts!

  2. You said it, brother! I just now fantasized about a Biden-Trump debate (yes I think he’s our best shot by a mile) in which he asks America, “Did you like protections for preexisting conditions? Having your kids covered until 26? Not hitting benefit caps and having to hold bake sales for money? All gone now? BLAME HIM AND HIS REPUBLICAN PARTY!!!”

    • If Biden gets the nod, you can forget about any Presidential debates…Trump would diddle dick around in the negotiations, and make sure it never happened…That chicken shit needs a WOMAN on stage so he goes in feeling all powerful and dominant and shit…

      • Yeah, I don’t see tRump skulking and lurking around behind Biden on the debate stage the way he did with Hillary. That was super creepy! I could easily see him do it to Warren though, not sure about Harris. But I don’t see him even trying it Biden. It’s like this thing with ‘The Squad’. He hasn’t spouted off with his crap with men, and I’m sure there are progressive, male freshmen Dems of color. We haven’t seen the Coward in Chief go after them. He’s a cowardly bully boy.

  3. Your last line here say it all Murph, the setting for giant failures on every front is beginning to jell at this point ….
    Trump is flailing like a fish out of water, scared spit-less by the close at hand Mueller clarification on his Report, and whoopee, suddenly Epstein in a hot topic everywhere, a man that knows places times, where he could easily crucify Trump with the help of a number of underage, at the time young girls …

    Trump’s failure in these times comes from his uncaring about anyone or thing but his own pleasures … go until you are caught, then bribe/pay your way out until the next time …

    there MUST be a full and accurate revelation of the intertwined lives of Trump and Epstein, there is absolutely hell to pay … the avoidance of guilt charges this long, pertaining to the trafficking and procurement, plus horrendous use of underage girls is composed, obviously of a nefarious arranger, (Cohen), Trump’s fake billions, and Epstein’s REAL money …

    There is NO TIME to waste, in Trump’s own words lies the fool he has always been, let us NOT forget, Trump IS a glaring danger to US and the whole fast heating world … GOTV …!!

    • That’s not the only failure they’re set up for buddy…With the Dems in control of the House, the CR for the debt ceiling as well as a budget extension will originate with them…They’ll take the GOP Senate for a ride, Trump will threaten another shutdown, and the Democrats will be more than happy to give him one 13 months before the election…Even if McConnell passes a clean CR, if Trump betoes it in a macho pique, McConnell likely doesn’t have the votes to override it…

    • I know it…And ya better get use to it, she’s gonna be coming around a LOT in the next 17 months methinks…

  4. Unfortunately, repeal will be a death sentence for thousands. My business partner got a heart transplant through Obamacare…without the ACA, no one wanted to insure him. If repeal had occurred in the six months leading up to surgery, he’d probably have died. (We think he could weather repeal now, he’s healthy and can maintain whatever happens, hopefully.)

    I think we might be tempted to look for silver linings to Trump’s destructiveness. While I’m a general optimist, I think that the long term consequences of the Republican agenda are more negative than positive. Some would say “if they repeal, we’ll be closer to single payer.” I’m skeptical…I think the route to single payer is faster without repeal than with it.

    But may jeebus have mercy on us all. There will be a price for our national decisions.

  5. “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!”

    Murf, Murf, Murf. You wrote that as if the Dems will get even half a chance to “point out” anything. The “liberal” media will do like it always does–give Trump the 10 minutes of “blame the Dems,” followed by an hour of GOP legislators bleating “it’s all the Dems’ fault,” and then a whole 10 seconds of ONE Democrat whose defense will be taken completely out of context and then, of course, spun by a media “analyst” to favor the GOP’s original “blame the Dems” point.

    This is the same media that simply ignored (or trivialized) every fucking lie that Trump told and fell for (and repeated) EVERY single bit of “breaking news” about Hillary’s emails.

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