MORNING MESSAGE
Five GOP Health Care Buzz Phrases You Need to Inoculate Yourself Against
...the
right wing is burying their true goals under policy buzzwords and misleading
claims, while misrepresenting the ACA and Medicaid in slippery language and
flat-out lies ... When you are at an event or meeting with your member of
Congress, protect yourself against the misinformation with this decoder for
Republican policy buzz phrases...
Mass Deportation Underway
“Mass
Deportations Have Begun, Congressman Says” reports International Business
Times: “U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro accused President Trump on Thursday of
putting a mass deportation program into place, saying it goes beyond anything
orchestrated by prior administrations … He said the only thing that will limit
the program is the size of ICE’s budget. He said ICE officials refused to answer
questions about the number of people currently in detention centers, where the
detainees are from and how many overstayed their visas versus how many were
‘border crossers.'”
WH
aides scheme to deport DREAMers without Trump’s signature. LAT: “They have
examined at least two options that would not directly involve Trump, according
to two immigration policy advisors to the White House: a lawsuit brought by
states, and new legal guidance that details who is a priority for
deportation.”
Trump
retreats in travel ban fight. The Atlantic: “The Trump administration told a
federal appeals court Thursday it would rewrite its controversial travel ban
targeting several Muslim-majority countries, effectively conceding defeat for
now … [Justice Dept.] lawyers declined to ask the Ninth Circuit to convene a
broader panel to reconsider the three judges’ decision … The administration
hasn’t offered details yet on its next executive order, which President Trump
said would be released sometime next week.”
Many
businesses close for “Day Without Immigrants.” NYT: “The protest called for
immigrants, whether naturalized citizens or undocumented, to stay home from work
or school, close their businesses and abstain from shopping … No national group
organized the action … the Pentagon warned its employees that a number of its
food concessions, including Sbarro’s, Starbucks and Taco Bell, were closed …
Restaurants, from San Francisco to Phoenix to Washington, D.C., were some of the
most visible spots affected, with well-known chefs closing some of their
eateries for the day in support.”
ACA Replacement Plan Unveiled
Republicans
sketch out ACA repeal plans. WSJ: “The plan from House GOP leaders would
achieve a central goal of Republicans of overhauling Medicaid in a way that
reduces its funding. It would also strike down pillars of the health-care law,
such as the requirement that most Americans pay a penalty if they don’t have
insurance … It would replace the health-law subsidies with tax credits Americans
could use to help pay for private insurance, and it would allow for skimpier
health plans not permitted under the ACA … [The plan] could face opposition from
Republicans in the more than a dozen states that expanded Medicaid…”
Plan
would redistribute wealth upward. NYT: “It would substantially cut funding
for states in providing free insurance to low-income adults through Medicaid.
And it would change how tax credits are distributed by giving all Americans not
covered through work a flat credit by age, regardless of income … the current
system is set up to ensure that low and middle-income Americans can afford the
cost of their premiums. The Republican plan would not do that, and would result
in many more low-income people losing out on coverage…”
Pro-ACA
ad blitz. CNN: “During the congressional recess, when members of Congress
return to their home states … the Alliance for Health Care Security … is
spending a seven-figure sum in five states with key Republican senators …
Nevada, Alaska, Arizona, Maine and West Virginia…”
Unions Divided Over Trump
“Trump’s
Inroads in Union Ranks Have Labor Leaders Scrambling” reports NYT: ” Some
unions, even if traditionally Democratic, have aims that align with Mr. Trump’s
stated priorities: building infrastructure, rewriting trade agreements, blocking
an exodus of jobs. But union leaders are in many cases scrambling to get in step
with members…”
House
GOP targets public sector unions. W. Post: “Two House subcommittees joined
forces for Republicans to hit what they consider to be abuses of ‘official
time.’ That system allows government labor organization officials to engage in
certain, but certainly not all, union-related activities while being paid by
federal agencies … [While] official time is used for such things as improving
productivity and resolving workplace problems, Republicans narrowly and
inaccurately cast it as a system allowing union people to do union business on
the taxpayer’s dime.”
Goodbye Regulation
Regulatory
freeze begins to take effect. The Hill: “This week alone, the Department of
Health and Human Services delayed two rules: one to protect the privacy of
alcohol and drug abusers who seek treatment, and a second to help the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention’s protect against the introduction,
transmission and spread of communicable diseases like Ebola and the Zika virus.
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission delayed a rule it finalized two days
before the inauguration requiring federal agencies to enact hiring policies that
favor individuals with disabilities. Last week, the Federal Railroad
Administration delayed new safety rules for commuter trains, while the U.S.
Department of Agriculture (USDA) delayed news standards for how animals should
be treated if the farmer wishes to sell the meat as certified organic.”
Trump
signs bill repealing coal regulation. The Hill: “The bill quashes the Office
of Surface Mining’s Stream Protection Rule, a regulation to protect waterways
from coal mining waste that officials finalized in December.”
Acosta May Not Be Better Than Puzder
Unions
worry about new Labor Secretary pick. American Prospect: “It’s too early,
labor advocates say, to know whether [Alexander] Acosta is qualified to lead the
department. During his short stint on the NLRB, Acosta is likely to have signed
onto rulings that came down in favor of business and against workers and
unions.”
“Trump’s
Labor Pick Has a History of Attacking Voting Rights,” reports The Nation:
“[He] was appointed by Bush as the assistant attorney general with
responsibility for leading the US Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division
… Acosta intervened in a pair of lawsuits brought by Ohio civil-rights activists
who objected that the Ohio law that permitted the challenging of the right of
voters to cast their ballots was unconstitutional … Lawyers’ Committee for Civil
Rights Under Law President and Executive Director Kristen Clarke said …
‘…actions taken during Mr. Acosta’s tenure violated Justice Department policy
and federal law. Political and ideological affiliations were used as a litmus
test to evaluate job candidates and career attorneys…'”
Breakfast Sides
EPA
staff opposes EPA nominee. NYT: “Employees of the Environmental Protection
Agency have been calling their senators to urge them to vote on Friday against
the confirmation of Scott Pruitt … a remarkable display of activism and defiance
that presages turbulent times ahead for the E.P.A. … said James A. Thurber, the
director of the Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies at American
University[,] ‘I can’t think of any other time when people in the bureaucracy
have done this.'”
Senate
GOP snubbing House tax plan. Politico: “The border adjustment tax would
generate more than a trillion dollars over a decade; there’s no obvious way to
replace that money, which is needed to help pay for a steep cut in corporate and
income taxes … But the idea is sharply dividing Republicans — even within the
White House … Many Republican senators say privately they detest the concept,
fretting that it will hurt their in-state retailers like Walmart … Without it,
[Speaker Ryan’s allies] contend, tax reform will die.”
Sen.
Sanders introduces bill to expand Social Security. The Hill: “The
legislation would increase Social Security benefits by about $1,300 annually for
seniors who make less than $16,000, while boosting the amount of taxes paid by
high-income earners by subjecting incomes above $250,000 to payroll taxes … Rep.
Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.) is introducing a House version of the bill.”
Progressive
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