DC Deciphered

Happy 4^th of July week!  As is common for a holiday week, it’s been a pretty slow news week.  Most of the focus has been on Trump’s overseas trip and the G20 meeting in Germany.  And Thursday there was a little flurry of excitement when the government’s ethics chief announced he’d be resigning six months early, saying essentially that his efforts were futile under the Trump presidency. Oh, and then there was that teeny tiny thing about North Korea launching an ICBM, which puts them significantly closer to being able to launch a nuclear missile that could reach the Alaska.  But there was actually a lot of news this week in addition to that.  So what else happened this week that you might have missed? Continue reading →

You can’t hurry love (or so the old song goes), but can you hurry health care reform?* Republicans are hoping the answer to that question is yes.  But why are they in such a hurry to get it done??  The answer is not what you think.  Or, at least, it’s not only the reasons that you think.

Yes, part of the reason they’re in such a rush is that they were hoping to sneak a bill through before the public had time to learn what was in it & push back against it. (Thankfully thousands of really great, dedicated activists around the country made sure this ploy didn’t work out).  And yeah, there’s also the fact that Trump and numerous other Republicans promised that repeal would happen on “day one” once they were in control of Washington.  So they’re eager to show their voters that they’re making good on that promise.  But those aren’t the main reasons Republicans are in such a hurry to get health care done. Continue reading →

Happy 4th of July from DC Deciphered!!

Hope your day is filled with sun, fun, fireworks & all the rest of that good stuff!

Finally, a week not completely dominated by the Russia story!  And even better than that, the story that did dominate, at least for a couple days, was the battle over health care reform, finally getting the attention it’s deserved.  Another big story this week was the close of the Supreme Court’s term for the summer.  The Court made a big announcement on Monday, allowing Trump’s travel ban to partially go into effect until it hears the case in October (the Trump administration put the ban into effect at 8pm Thursday evening, experiencing a few small hiccups).

The other big news coming out of the Court had to do the list of cases they’ll be taking up next session, which includes some biggies.  And then, reliably, by the end of the week, the focus had drifted back to Russia.  But there’s was lots of other stuff going on this week.  So what else happened that you might have missed? Continue reading →

Talk about a Manic Monday! Given the vast amounts of news that was made on Monday (and also over the last few weeks) it seems like the perfect time to flash back to a DC Deciphered entry from March, A Caveat on Incompetence.

The point of that post was that Trump & the GOP were struggling to achieve some of their major initiatives due to some major incompetence on their part – and yes, we should be relieved that the incompetence was likely saving us from some of their grander ambitions, but we shouldn’t get too comfortable.  Because even with that incompetence, even if they never managed to pass a single piece of major legislation (though they now may be on the verge of doing just that) they could still do an awful lot of damage to the country and progressive priorities.

I focused on three areas in particular where Trump would be able to have a big impact, without the GOP ever sending a single law to his desk.  These were:

1. Shaping the judiciary – particularly the Supreme Court – but the lower courts are crucial as well, as the original post explains.  (The original post was written after Trump had nominated Neil Gorsuch to the Court but before the Senate had voted on his nomination).

2. Immigration (including but not limited to the travel ban)

3. Climate (including but not limited to the Paris Climate Accord Continue reading →

Happy first Friday of summer!  On Fridays, I usually do a “What Did I Miss?” post, in which I try to draw attention to some lower profile news stories from the week – those stories that flew under the radar while the media was busy focusing on flashier, more scintillating stories (yeah, I’m looking at you, Russia probe).  But this week, now that the media has finally turned the spotlight onto the GOP health care bill, I want to keep your focus there.*  I know for some of you, this topic may not be high on your list of interests, but . . .

Even if you get your insurance through your employer, this debate affects you, because even employer-sponsored plans stand to lose some of their protections under an Obamacare repeal bill.  Plus, you almost certainly have a friend or loved one who relies on Medicaid or the individual insurance market, or will one day in the future.  There is no one in the country who won’t be touched – whether next year or next decade – if the GOP bill passes.  So I really hope everyone will participate in this discussion. Continue reading →

14 million people cut from their insurance coverage with the stroke of a pen.  That probably sounds like an exaggeration designed to grab eyeballs, but it’s not.   That’s actually what the experts at the Congressional Budget Office predict will happen over the next ten years if the Medicaid cuts in the GOP’s health care plan go into effect.  That’s just the Medicaid cuts – it doesn’t factor in at all the losses among those on private insurance plans.*

Now, I know there may be people who are tempted to tune out when the topic turns to Medicaid, because they think it doesn’t affect them or their families, and the whole program might just seem foreign to them.  But please, stay tuned.  There’s a good chance someone you know & care about is touched by Medicaid, even if you don’t realize it.   And there’s a good chance too that one day your life will be affected by the program.  That is, assuming the program is still there . . . Continue reading →

It could end up being the biggest political scandal of our time.*  And no, I’m not talking about anything related to Russia. I’m talking about the Republican attempt to remake 1/6 of our economy, causing more than 20 million Americans to lose insurance, removing protections from tens of millions more, and doing so all under a strict shroud of secrecy while racing to the finish line, because they know – if they allowed any time or opportunity for public dissent – the blowback from the public would be staggering. Continue reading →

So yet another week started off looking like it was going to be dominated by the Russia story, with AG Jeff Sessions testimony before the Senate Intelligence Committee on Tuesday generating lots of noise. However, that ever-present story was interrupted mid-week by the horrific shooting at the GOP House baseball practice in Alexandria, VA.  As I write this post, both Rep. Steve Scalise and Tyson lobbyist Matt Mika are in critical condition, so DC Deciphered is sending out good thoughts for them and their families.  Thankfully, the two Capitol Police officers who were injured in the shooting appear to be doing well. One of the officers, David Bailey, threw out the first pitch at the Congressional Baseball Game on Thursday evening:

Then, what do you know? Within a day, much of the attention had turned back, yet again, to Russia with reports that Special Counsel Mueller is investigating Trump for obstruction of justice.  And with that, the week was once again dominated by the story that has permanently kidnapped our news cycle.  But there actually was other news this week.  So what else happened that you might have missed? Continue reading →

Edit 6/15: This post was originally published around 12:30am on 6/14, many hours before the horrific shooting in Alexandria, VA at the Republican congressional baseball practice.  With the hindsight aided by that awful event, I should have placed more emphasis on a point I mentioned only in passing in the original post below, which is that there are legitimate safety concerns with the huge numbers of reporters crowding into the Capitol building, trying to speak with Senators.

Even barring something as shocking & terrible (and hopefully rare) as what happened on Wednesday, there are the more mundane concerns that come from simple crowd control.  But as I did mention in the original post, hopefully the Senate Rules Committee will be able to find a way to address these legitimate concerns without hindering the very crucial role of the press.

***

“Democracy dies in darkness.”  That was the new slogan the Washington Post revealed beneath its masthead shortly after the inauguration of President Trump.  The rollout was received with quite a bit of mockery at the time, as it did seem somewhat melodramatic, even for those of us who feared the worst about the coming Republican takeover of D.C..  However, just a few months into the Trump administration & unified Republican control of Washington, it’s become strikingly clear just how easily the norms of our democracy can be eroded, and how crucial a role our media plays in shining a spotlight when that begins to happen. Continue reading →