Another GOP Stealth Bill Moves Toward Passage - While We're Distracted By The Senate Health Bill

You have to hand it to the Machiavellian Repukes who love to make legislative moves of a dastardly nature, and now more covertly than ever before.  This is especially true with the cynically named 'Better Care Reconciliation Act. of 2017.'   which has now been scored by the CBO.  Let's also note that  the Director of the Congressional Budget Office is  Keith Hall - a card carrying Republican - not a Dem!  This is important to reference as assorted 'pukes try to blast Hall's report as "inaccurate" or "incomplete".

What the CBO scoring found is that an estimated 22 million Americans would lose their health insurance under the "Better Care" Act the Senate GOP is trying to foist on the country.  Worse, no fewer than 15 million would lose out next year alone. How would this occur, by what processes? As noted on p. 8, the biggest attrition would arrive by massive increase in deductibles for low income people.   Thus, a deductible soaring to $10,000 a year for a low income family would mean they simply wouldn't purchase health insurance, hence they'd be left out in the cold - with the only option to go to ERs.

The other aspect concerns the soaring premiums which the CBO report estimates will spike as much as 74 percent.  While the "individual market" premiums would average about "20 percent lower" this is precisely because these markets would be composed almost entirely of the young and healthy who'd make few annual health visits or exact much cost.  Meanwhile, older Americans - say 64 years of age and earning $56 k/yr. - would see their premiums go to $16,000 year from $4,400 currently under the ACA formula.

The 74 % premium  increase figure outside the individual market is based on an 'apples to apples' comparison between what ACA covered citizens have now and what they'd get under "Trump Care".  To fix ideas, if ACA insured folks (say for a family of 4)  are currently paying a $500 a month premium they'd pay $870 if the GOP "Better Care" scam passes.   This spike would also clear many off health care rolls, which is exactly what the GOP's free market denizens hope for.

Left unreferenced amidst all the distraction with the "Better Care"  bill is how another disastrous GOP stealth regulatory bill is working its way toward manifestation. This "Financial Choice Act" - so called-  would give Trump the automatic power to fire the heads of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and the Federal Housing Finance Agency.  The former keeps oversight over the behavior of players in the financial market place to ensure they don't screw you, overcharge you for services or unload Ponzi schemes masquerading as proper investments. The latter oversees Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which oversees housing matters to ensure consumers aren't buying bogus mortgages, overpaying in interest or processing charges and generally ensuring that realtors, sellers are abiding by the laws.

This "Financial Choice Act" - unknown to most - also gives congress the power over the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's budget,  which means lawmakers could defund the agency entirely.  In other words, it would literally give Trump and the GOP congress absolute power to wreck consumers' credit and financial stability - by leaving them open to all manner of shyster exploitation with zero protections.  (The CFPB has cracked down on debt collectors, the credit card industry, payday lenders, for profit colleges, banks and mortgage lenders)

For reference, in the past six years the CFPB has provided nearly $12 billion in relief for more than 29 million consumers - many victims of financial or credit card scams. Trump and the GOP may sympathize with the plight of possible future shyster victims, but the bottom line is that they don't want to shell any money out to victims.   Recall here that the CFPB was created out of the Dodd-Frank banking legislation to enforce federal consumer financial laws and protect consumers in the financial marketplace.  The agency's main goals have been to:

- Root out unfair, deceptive or abusive practices by writing appropriate rules, supervising companies and enforcing laws.

- Solicit and respond to consumer complaints.

- Enhance financial education.

- Research consumer experiences for assorted financial products, e.g. annuities.

- Monitor financial markets for new risks to consumers.

All of these have been found to be more than warranted, which is why the CFPB reaped $12 billion in relief for more than 29 million consumers the past six years. Had the assorted financial outfits been adhering to the existing laws the CFPB would not have been needed by all those citizens. The fact that 29 million got screwed shows the need for thorough regulation and an agency to oversee such. That Trump and the Republicans would destroy this agency shows they have no more concern for the financial welfare of their voters than they do for wayward bugs that might invade their vacay homes.

Section 841 of the Financial Choice Act has been particularly noteworthy in its potential to undermine and overturn the interests of investors, especially retirement savers.   Under Sec. 841 the Labiior Department's fiduciary rule would e repealed. To refresh memories, that rule stipulates that anyone handling retirement assets - and gives financial advice to savers - has a duty to work in their clients' best interests and disclose any conflicts where and when they exist.   By Jan. 1, 2018, under the impetus of the GOP's Sec. 841 of the "Financial Choice Act", the fiduciary rule will no longer likely to be enforced.

If your financial planner doesn't inform you of his conflicts, or takes you for a ride by selling you some mutual fund that is front loaded with fees he can make $$$ off of, it's all on you. Added to your new healthcare spiking premiums, welcome to Trump World, Year II.

This elicits the question of what new nightmares await us next year compliments of Trump and his Reptiles.

Senate GOOPs Using Trump As "Shield" To Push Through Despicable Bills

Maybe an image for the future - but not yet - the rats (GOP reps) remain ensconced on ship Trump.

Wonder why so much media oxygen is being allowed by the Reeps to be consumed by the Trump kerfuffle and his unstable administration? It's a deliberate plan adopted by the GOP to take attention off what they are doing behind the scenes, including already passing a banking deregulation  bill and eliminating the ACA.   In the first, the House voted 233 to 186 on Thursday for a sweeping rewrite of the rules governing Wall Street in "the Financial Choice Act".  According to the WSJ (June 9, p. B1) it "would unwind major parts of Dodd-Frank by relieving healthy banks of regulatory requirements". If this thing is passed by the Senate one wonders what excuses the Goops will offer if there's another financial meltdown.


And that's just the beginning. After 4 months of being paralyzed by the Trump ongoing shit storm, the Goops have decided to use it to their advantage as a shield. So while millions of Americans had their eyes glued to the tube and Comey hearing, the Repukes in the Senate Financial Committee were honing a plan to ram through - with only 50 votes - the final demise of the ACA that would leave over 20 million with no health care.

Holding 52 seats in the Senate, the GOP can afford to lose only two members of their party on a vote to undo the health care law they have assailed for seven years. They will not receive any support from Democratic senators or the Senate’s two independents (Angus King and Bernie Sanders), but they can count on support from Vice President Mike Pence to break a tie, if needed.  Well, they expect it will be needed and are in a rush to get the deal done - with no hearings or discussion - before the heat dies down on the Trump v. Comey battle and the hyped up news cycle on the ongoing probes.

To fix ideas on this so it's less abstract, Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) erupted Thursday at a Senate Finance Committee hearing over how Senate Republicans are conducting negotiations over the GOP-backed American Health Care Act.  Recall this AHCA will demolish Obamacare, and eliminate all kinds of basic provisions including maternity care, visits to ERs, and mental health care. Those with pre-existing conditions will also have to pay much more. The worst aspect is how state coffers will suffer from having over 20 million tossed off Medicaid by 2020. Here in Colo. the state budget deficit is expected to skyrocket to $893m once the federal matching funds for Medicaid are gone..

Given these repercussions you can imagine Sen. McCaskill's rage at what the Repuke vermin were attempting. Finally squeezing an answer out of chairman Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) confirming that there would not be any hearings on the bill, McCaskill erupted on the lack of transparency and bipartisanship surrounding the discussions. But we've seen this act before, especially with the scumball Hatch, e.g.

http://brane-space.blogspot.com/2017/01/democrats-locate-their-gonads-and-hatch.html


Hatch tried his sleazy best to assuage McCaskill by saying that Republicans "have invited" Democrats to share their ideas, as egregious a claim as when he bloviated back in January:

"I don’t remember us treating their nominees this way...."

referring to Den senators rightful questioning of Trump's nominees to fill his swamp.


As it should, this elicited a scoff from McCaskill:

 "When you say that you're inviting us and I heard you, Mr. Secretary, just say that you'd love our support — for what? We don't even know. We have no idea what's being proposed. There's a group of guys in a back room somewhere that are making these decisions."

But this is the GOP M.O. now, grabbing all the cheese they can while the 'Momma Rat' (Trump) tries to fend off "the cats".  They don't have the honor or integrity to come out in the open and deal with bills the normal, established way. They have to try to do it under a cloak and in secret to ensure their hateful agenda is unleashed on the American public - especially while they're mostly preoccupied by Trump's ongoing circus and the Russia investigations.

Rather than act as honorable reps and patriots, including joining the Democrats to seriously investigate their monkey in the White House, they'd rather hitch their wagons to his sorry fortunes to pass their despicable bills that will leave millions without even a pot to piss in. Indeed, as the WSJ reported two days ago, 18 Ohio counties are already going to be without health exchanges and that means - in opioid country - many will not get narcone (naxalone) when they need it to counter an opioid overdose. Will these GOP sewer rats be prepared to take responsibility for the thousands - many Trump supporters- who will now perish? I doubt it, no more than they take any responsibility to put country over party in the Trump investigations.

McCaskill  to her credit acknowledged that Democrats had "made mistakes" when crafting the Affordable Care Act, but she noted that at least there were hearings then where Republican amendments were proposed and accepted.   Hence, it was expected the GOP would do likewise now with their AHCA. But again, they are not because they are sewer rats devoid of honor - using the Trump chaos as an expedient shield to cover their actions.

McCaskill's last words to Hatch ought to enrage every red-blooded American to pursue these GOP Senate rats into their neighborhoods and conduct aggressive protests:

"You couldn't have a more partisan exercise than what you're engaged in right now. We're not even going to have a hearing on a bill that impacts one-sixth of our economy."

See McCaskill in action here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XRt7tqlD-og