Withh potential cuts to Medicaid, think about who will be impacted. Yes, the less fortunate will be but that impacts the broader economy as well. If they are not able to pay for healthcare, they won't be able to spend money on groceries, gasoline, housing, etc. OR they will do without and their costs will actually increase OR (and this is very likely), we will all be paying more in healthcare (all while reducing what they pay nurses, techs, aides, etc) because the medical systems have to make up for it somewhere. Additionally, ⅔ of everyone living in a nursing home is doing so with Medicaid (my dad included). What happens to those people? Will nursing homes have to kick them out? Will they have a menu plan of care available based on ability to pay? Who wants to take care of my high needs dad since I am physically unable to do it myself? Medicaid is just the beginning - once they chip away at that, they will start in on Medicare. Think about it. Call your congressmen - whether they voted against it (tell them thanks) or for the cuts (tell them why they were wrong and how this will impact REAL PEOPLE). Medicaid recipients, by and large, are not working the system - billionaires are.
I was wondering just how those fewer federal dollars in the pockets of the federal workers, rather, no longer in their pockets and so no longer being spent anywhere, what does that do to local spending. Plus, those people will be looking for employment.
Add in the tariffs, which hit the poorest people the hardest (it is a tax on them) and them trying to make our dollar worthless, and it will basically duplicate the conditions that lead to the great depression.
I seem to have deleted the letter NY-17 folks got from Lawler, but it was "I will NEVER vote to end..." and repeats it for a list of things people need. I called his office and told him we are on to him. And told him Trump's going to lock their local offices soon, and shut them out of congress because they are irrelevant. I call almost every day.
Actually, I'm starting to feel bad for them because they must be afraid for their safety and that of their families. The messaging has been clear and they are trapped, I'm thinkin'. How about Democrats put out feelers for a bill that would pay to protect them, since there have been credible threats from King Odious and his minions.
I am not so gratuitous. They are in large part "trapped" because they helped to create this moment in our history. While Democrats are partly to fault, the Republicans are by a very large majority the root of this travesty.
Yes, but it might give them an out. Last night's zoom with Indivisible and Schumer said they only needed to flip two repubs. I've tried to get Lawler, NY-17, to see that he's not really safe from his base or from above. As usual, a lib being sucker?
I hate to break it to you, but Americans ARE too stupid to understand that Medicaid is being destroyed. Plenty of Trump flags still flying in my little hick town, and plenty of opinion pieces in the tiny local rag celebrating everything Trump/Musk have done so far. The worst of us are unmoved. They believe what lying republicans as shown above are telling them.
You can't fix stupid unless stupid wants to be fixed. I lived in WV for five years. As a US MIL Veteran, I was and remain shocked and appalled by the number of pro-Trump Veterans in that state. But WV is one of the poorest and most poorly educated states in the country. An estimated 30% of the state is on Medicaid. Their suffering will only grow worse. And they won’t get any smarter.
As a Widow of a VietVet 1967-1970, I thank you for your service Sir. If my husband were alive today—I’d kinda be afraid of what he might do to these “Rat Bastids.” From—a born Nu Yawka
Thank you! I was USAF Intel overseas, '62 - '66. My distant paternal grandfather fought with the 9th Virginia Regiment, American Revolutionary War. Two uncles in WW2, US Army. The older uncle retired at the rank of Lt. Colonel. Those "Rat Bastards" are destroying our republic. Those who now pretend to “lead” our nation are the worst among us, mired in hate, lies, deceptions, and treason.
Oh, geez... not West Virginny?! I'm from Pittsburgh so I know! They probably don't watch alot of news and until they see with their own eyes and feel the pinch when they can't buy as much food, they'll still believe ol' Chumpty has their backs! Trouble with that is...is that Ol' Chumpty is too bz LOOTIN the Treasury and taking everything good away from us! He's had such a huge chip on his shoulder all his life becoz he's been such a LOSER..now is his turn to get the world back!! He cheated at everything his whole life! You think he won this election fairly?! Heck NO! He cheated, he even publicly thanked Musk for helping him win the election! And, he's trying to do all the damage he can do before he is found out! Too bad, there was a video out there explaining what he did and what evidence was found! I hope they ALLLL go to jail!!
One very deep, abiding and grave concern is: How much damage will be done before he is reined if, IF he is reined in at all? And, how much in time and human expense will be required to repair our republic if she can be repaired at all? Benjamin Franklin after the Continental Congress when asked what had the Congress created: "A republic if you can keep her."
Mine too. South Dakota here. Totally dependent on a lot of federal dollars, we already have a depressed and suppressed wages. No affordable housing and no solutions for that. A lot of luxury home building of course.
Yes, I called our so called representatives in DC yesterday and they denied cuts to Medicaid to me. I simply said “no smoke and mirrors. Represent the people!”
Hey I’m ok with all of this as long as all of the tax money the Feds want to squeeze out of us goes only to the states and let the bloated billionaires pay for all they get out of DC. Otherwise stop trying to increase wealth for the obnoxiously,ultra, ELITE Rich millionaires and billionaires by starving already hungry kids and adults. Where are the elderly who are in long term care going to go? Medicaid pays for them. Rural GA shows what happens when Medicaid dollars aren’t expanded. Many community hospitals and acute center closed. If you have a heart attack or stroke good luck because more than 1/2 of your Golden Hour is wasted on the road not the ER or OR. Look back to the era of Robber Barons because that’s where we are. Those who voted for him are the first to suffer.
I too called Lawler’s office and spoke with an aid. I expressed serious upset with his vote for the budget that did deep cuts to Medicaid. The aid argued with me that Lawler hadn’t voted to cut Medicaid.
I have in-laws who are arguing the same thing...until I told them exactly what BTC said in his piece ..that $800 billion is to be cut by the Energy Department...who controls medicaid...the only way for that to happen is to cut medicaid...Republicans are just using the Department name to hide behind that fact.
Don’t think our country will survive until 2028. Too much, too fast is happening. I am fortunate not to need food stamps. Have they no shame or concern for others?, Medicare, etc. but I worry about the people who depend on this for survival. What a cruel bunch of cowards who have been elected.
Amen! I am a disabled senior on disability with Medicaid/Medicare. If they take away medical, food, and my check.. I'm out on the streets...death is next.
And I'm old enough to remember that I'm old enough to remember a time before anyone this savage got into office, (OK so i dontvremember Goldwater & barely recall Wallace) so BIG thank you Mr Cohen for pointing this out w/ such clarity & detail, we have to KEEP pointing it out within every venue we are able to comment, bc this is something that makes eyes glaze over among the vast numbed electorate, & we just need to hammer this into concise bullet points since o/w the same verbal gymnastics the Republicans are pulling that you describe is going to keep going on until they can figure out a way to blame the Democrats for GOP malfeasance.
I am old enough to remember Goldwater (because his bumper sticker got my mom out of a speeding ticket in Arizona). I have to hope my mom didn’t really realize what she backed because she raised me to care.
The 0.001% obviously don’t need a tax cut. They “have more than God” and the rest of us. Have any of them ever worked in a homeless shelter, food bank or other volunteer organizations helping the needy? Warren Buffet has given away a tremendous amount of his wealth as has Bill Gates. Melinda Gates, Bill’s ex wife and Mackenzie Scott, Jeff Bezos ex wife have both been donating to charities on a great scale. Those billionaires don’t need another cent and they don’t need bigger homes, yachts etc. Warren Buffet has spent his life in the same average home and drove the same car —average lives. They are ripping us off. They have NO ethics. As for the republicans who voted for all this, they must know that their own supporters are waking up and not voting for their re-election. That party will be in ashes. I’m just hoping that the 3 special elections later this year will flip the House and that Hakeem Jeffries will become Speaker. It can’t come soon enough.
They Really Think Americans Are As Stupid And Dumb As They Are. Like We Don’t See Hear And Know What They Are Doing.What A Bunch Of Losers, Liars And Cowards They Are.Pathetic Bunch of Traitors.
I fervently hope that your belief that the next election cycle will result in a Congressional change that will begin to right these wrongs is warranted . The problem is - how can we believe at this point that we’ll have free and fair elections? trump/musk are taking over the postal service among other tactics to rig elections. Gerrymandering and voter suppression are already widespread. It’s wishful thinking to imagine that they will risk their goal of transforming our country to a dictatorship by allowing elections to proceed as they have in the past. In other words, we can’t wait for 2026 to save us. We may still have a chance if enough people act - and quickly. We have to use every tactic possible- calls, showing up in person at offices, town halls, mass protests and economic boycotts. The people do have power if they exercise it. Will enough be roused to defend our country? TBD
It’s so infuriating that they hide this atrocious act of cutting Medicaid and food stamps in the euphemism of fiscal responsibility. It’s cruel. Most people won’t get it so I’m glad you are educating people.
Withh potential cuts to Medicaid, think about who will be impacted. Yes, the less fortunate will be but that impacts the broader economy as well. If they are not able to pay for healthcare, they won't be able to spend money on groceries, gasoline, housing, etc. OR they will do without and their costs will actually increase OR (and this is very likely), we will all be paying more in healthcare (all while reducing what they pay nurses, techs, aides, etc) because the medical systems have to make up for it somewhere. Additionally, ⅔ of everyone living in a nursing home is doing so with Medicaid (my dad included). What happens to those people? Will nursing homes have to kick them out? Will they have a menu plan of care available based on ability to pay? Who wants to take care of my high needs dad since I am physically unable to do it myself? Medicaid is just the beginning - once they chip away at that, they will start in on Medicare. Think about it. Call your congressmen - whether they voted against it (tell them thanks) or for the cuts (tell them why they were wrong and how this will impact REAL PEOPLE). Medicaid recipients, by and large, are not working the system - billionaires are.
I was wondering just how those fewer federal dollars in the pockets of the federal workers, rather, no longer in their pockets and so no longer being spent anywhere, what does that do to local spending. Plus, those people will be looking for employment.
Some of those fired federal workers will go on unemployment so they will be paid not to work. That's so fiscally responsible I can't stand it. Lol.
Assuming there is an employment office. Right now it's seems rather unlikely.
These policies may drive this country into another recession and possibly a depression.
Add in the tariffs, which hit the poorest people the hardest (it is a tax on them) and them trying to make our dollar worthless, and it will basically duplicate the conditions that lead to the great depression.
Horrible
I seem to have deleted the letter NY-17 folks got from Lawler, but it was "I will NEVER vote to end..." and repeats it for a list of things people need. I called his office and told him we are on to him. And told him Trump's going to lock their local offices soon, and shut them out of congress because they are irrelevant. I call almost every day.
Bravo!! You are a what it means to be an American!
Thank you. I'm retired. I've been badgering for a town hall, but the new trend is, they're yellow bellied, lily livered, chickens, and won't.
In other words, full-on COWARDS!!!
Actually, I'm starting to feel bad for them because they must be afraid for their safety and that of their families. The messaging has been clear and they are trapped, I'm thinkin'. How about Democrats put out feelers for a bill that would pay to protect them, since there have been credible threats from King Odious and his minions.
I am not so gratuitous. They are in large part "trapped" because they helped to create this moment in our history. While Democrats are partly to fault, the Republicans are by a very large majority the root of this travesty.
SO TRUE! They deserve what they get! They don't deserve to be looked out for becoz they NEVER look out for us?! All they do is take, take, take!
Yes, but it might give them an out. Last night's zoom with Indivisible and Schumer said they only needed to flip two repubs. I've tried to get Lawler, NY-17, to see that he's not really safe from his base or from above. As usual, a lib being sucker?
HMMMM BE READY FOR MIDTERMS
I hate to break it to you, but Americans ARE too stupid to understand that Medicaid is being destroyed. Plenty of Trump flags still flying in my little hick town, and plenty of opinion pieces in the tiny local rag celebrating everything Trump/Musk have done so far. The worst of us are unmoved. They believe what lying republicans as shown above are telling them.
You can't fix stupid unless stupid wants to be fixed. I lived in WV for five years. As a US MIL Veteran, I was and remain shocked and appalled by the number of pro-Trump Veterans in that state. But WV is one of the poorest and most poorly educated states in the country. An estimated 30% of the state is on Medicaid. Their suffering will only grow worse. And they won’t get any smarter.
As a Widow of a VietVet 1967-1970, I thank you for your service Sir. If my husband were alive today—I’d kinda be afraid of what he might do to these “Rat Bastids.” From—a born Nu Yawka
Thank you! I was USAF Intel overseas, '62 - '66. My distant paternal grandfather fought with the 9th Virginia Regiment, American Revolutionary War. Two uncles in WW2, US Army. The older uncle retired at the rank of Lt. Colonel. Those "Rat Bastards" are destroying our republic. Those who now pretend to “lead” our nation are the worst among us, mired in hate, lies, deceptions, and treason.
Oh, geez... not West Virginny?! I'm from Pittsburgh so I know! They probably don't watch alot of news and until they see with their own eyes and feel the pinch when they can't buy as much food, they'll still believe ol' Chumpty has their backs! Trouble with that is...is that Ol' Chumpty is too bz LOOTIN the Treasury and taking everything good away from us! He's had such a huge chip on his shoulder all his life becoz he's been such a LOSER..now is his turn to get the world back!! He cheated at everything his whole life! You think he won this election fairly?! Heck NO! He cheated, he even publicly thanked Musk for helping him win the election! And, he's trying to do all the damage he can do before he is found out! Too bad, there was a video out there explaining what he did and what evidence was found! I hope they ALLLL go to jail!!
One very deep, abiding and grave concern is: How much damage will be done before he is reined if, IF he is reined in at all? And, how much in time and human expense will be required to repair our republic if she can be repaired at all? Benjamin Franklin after the Continental Congress when asked what had the Congress created: "A republic if you can keep her."
What a great idea this note gives me - write short opinion pieces for local papers. Include just the facts like BTC did on this! I’m on it!!
Mine too. South Dakota here. Totally dependent on a lot of federal dollars, we already have a depressed and suppressed wages. No affordable housing and no solutions for that. A lot of luxury home building of course.
They'll believe it when it's gone
I drove around yesterday just looking for that flag think just maybe some would be gone.
A very red town here and only found one house that had removed the flag.
2 doors down was a sign that said -- Harris and Black Lives Matter
I live on a horseshoe maybe 20 house's and say forever about 15 with T$ump Flags
To say in the least I keep to myself most of the time
It's just very sick to see the Country going this way.
Have a awesome weekend
You do realize, these folks don't intend to allow us the opportunity to vote again.
Yes, I called our so called representatives in DC yesterday and they denied cuts to Medicaid to me. I simply said “no smoke and mirrors. Represent the people!”
Some would say they are being disingenuous on Medicaid. But these traitors aren’t playing dumb at anything. They are just fucking dumb
Not as dumb as the people who keep them in power.
Hey I’m ok with all of this as long as all of the tax money the Feds want to squeeze out of us goes only to the states and let the bloated billionaires pay for all they get out of DC. Otherwise stop trying to increase wealth for the obnoxiously,ultra, ELITE Rich millionaires and billionaires by starving already hungry kids and adults. Where are the elderly who are in long term care going to go? Medicaid pays for them. Rural GA shows what happens when Medicaid dollars aren’t expanded. Many community hospitals and acute center closed. If you have a heart attack or stroke good luck because more than 1/2 of your Golden Hour is wasted on the road not the ER or OR. Look back to the era of Robber Barons because that’s where we are. Those who voted for him are the first to suffer.
Trump’s Golden Age. For the billionaires. It wasn’t good for the poor
Brian, thank you again for your excellent reporting! This is no joke people.
I too called Lawler’s office and spoke with an aid. I expressed serious upset with his vote for the budget that did deep cuts to Medicaid. The aid argued with me that Lawler hadn’t voted to cut Medicaid.
I have in-laws who are arguing the same thing...until I told them exactly what BTC said in his piece ..that $800 billion is to be cut by the Energy Department...who controls medicaid...the only way for that to happen is to cut medicaid...Republicans are just using the Department name to hide behind that fact.
They won’t admit it out loud or in writing, but the public is starting to see through Johnson,et al’s, game.
Don’t think our country will survive until 2028. Too much, too fast is happening. I am fortunate not to need food stamps. Have they no shame or concern for others?, Medicare, etc. but I worry about the people who depend on this for survival. What a cruel bunch of cowards who have been elected.
Amen! I am a disabled senior on disability with Medicaid/Medicare. If they take away medical, food, and my check.. I'm out on the streets...death is next.
And I'm old enough to remember that I'm old enough to remember a time before anyone this savage got into office, (OK so i dontvremember Goldwater & barely recall Wallace) so BIG thank you Mr Cohen for pointing this out w/ such clarity & detail, we have to KEEP pointing it out within every venue we are able to comment, bc this is something that makes eyes glaze over among the vast numbed electorate, & we just need to hammer this into concise bullet points since o/w the same verbal gymnastics the Republicans are pulling that you describe is going to keep going on until they can figure out a way to blame the Democrats for GOP malfeasance.
I am old enough to remember Goldwater (because his bumper sticker got my mom out of a speeding ticket in Arizona). I have to hope my mom didn’t really realize what she backed because she raised me to care.
The 0.001% obviously don’t need a tax cut. They “have more than God” and the rest of us. Have any of them ever worked in a homeless shelter, food bank or other volunteer organizations helping the needy? Warren Buffet has given away a tremendous amount of his wealth as has Bill Gates. Melinda Gates, Bill’s ex wife and Mackenzie Scott, Jeff Bezos ex wife have both been donating to charities on a great scale. Those billionaires don’t need another cent and they don’t need bigger homes, yachts etc. Warren Buffet has spent his life in the same average home and drove the same car —average lives. They are ripping us off. They have NO ethics. As for the republicans who voted for all this, they must know that their own supporters are waking up and not voting for their re-election. That party will be in ashes. I’m just hoping that the 3 special elections later this year will flip the House and that Hakeem Jeffries will become Speaker. It can’t come soon enough.
Do you think after taking Medicaid and food stamps, they're going to allow us to have midterms?! Nope.
Playing dumb and lying are the strongest skills etc for the remnants of the Republican party. These are the crumbs, the ones without honor.
They Really Think Americans Are As Stupid And Dumb As They Are. Like We Don’t See Hear And Know What They Are Doing.What A Bunch Of Losers, Liars And Cowards They Are.Pathetic Bunch of Traitors.
I fervently hope that your belief that the next election cycle will result in a Congressional change that will begin to right these wrongs is warranted . The problem is - how can we believe at this point that we’ll have free and fair elections? trump/musk are taking over the postal service among other tactics to rig elections. Gerrymandering and voter suppression are already widespread. It’s wishful thinking to imagine that they will risk their goal of transforming our country to a dictatorship by allowing elections to proceed as they have in the past. In other words, we can’t wait for 2026 to save us. We may still have a chance if enough people act - and quickly. We have to use every tactic possible- calls, showing up in person at offices, town halls, mass protests and economic boycotts. The people do have power if they exercise it. Will enough be roused to defend our country? TBD
I think for them to cut Medicaid, food stamps, etc they definitely are not going to let us have midterms to vote them out!
It’s so infuriating that they hide this atrocious act of cutting Medicaid and food stamps in the euphemism of fiscal responsibility. It’s cruel. Most people won’t get it so I’m glad you are educating people.