By David Futrelle
Hey everyone, I’m still lost in headache-land (see my last post for details) but this is REALLY REALLY important for all WHTM readers in the US.
Senate Republicans have scheduled a vote after lunch TODAY on a “motion to proceed” that will pave the way for a final vote on their bill that will take away healthcare from tens of millions of Americans (including me, and probably a lot of you).
Tell them NO.
You can get the numbers of your Senators (and more info) at 5Calls.org Moveon.org, or on the Senate website or by calling the Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121.
Here’s what MoveOn suggests you tell them (roughly):
Tell Republicans: “Please oppose any bill that takes away health care from tens of millions of Americans.”
If you’re one of those Americans, definitely tell them that.
Tell Democrats: “Thank you for doing everything you can to fight Trumpcare. Please use every tactic at your disposal to slow and stop this bill, including the filibuster-by-amendment (which means: slowing down the bill with a high number of amendments when the bill does come to a vote). Please DO NOT vote for ANY amendments that will make it easier for Republicans pass Trumpcare.”
If any of the Republicans listed below are your Senators it’s ESPECIALLY important to call; Collins is a “no” vote; the others are (as I write this post) on the fence.
https://twitter.com/rsegbers/status/889595637469245440
One of the consolations of living here in Oakland California is who is representing me in Congress. Feinstein, Harris and Lee are people I can depend on to not be monsters.
Hambeast, I think McConnell wants to be reelected. If he doesn’t go all out on this, the cabal of shrieking demon crabs in human skin suits might abandon him
@IP, especially ironic considering McCain’s recent diagnosis and ongoing treatment which is covered by insurance. Then he troops in and votes to strip insurance from others, because fuck you, I got mine.
@DF
Sorry about that.
@ scildfreja
Heh, thanks. That’s both brilliant but also sad.
I still find it difficult to believe what’s going on there; and I’ve been very cognoscent of your excellent explanations of argument ad incredulity fallacy.
There’s a heartrending case here about a very poorly little boy. The issue is whether there’s anything that can be done for him or should the hospital take him off life support. It’s been the subject of many hearings in court. Because obviously it’s a very major issue about whether you should let a child die.
But that there are people capable of looking at literally hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of children and going “Fuck em”.
It literally is like something from a bad movie.
@ Robert Walker-Smith
Hopefully I’ll join you after 2018. I’ve got Feinstein and Harris, but I’ll need to redouble my efforts to get rid of that cactus-humping, embezzling asshole Hunter as soon as the Democrats point me to who’s running against him.
Sometimes I wonder if I should move to a swing district. Keith Ellison always votes the way I want him to and there’s no danger of a Republican winning in this district. The suburban districts lean red but not so much that they’re not at least in play. Same goes for state house and senate. My vote would matter way more there. But then, I’d be living in the suburbs. Not for me.
Good luck, US Americans. It must be such a terrifying time for you all right now. I’m sorry the discussion vote passed, but I hope between popular pressure and their infighting, you’ll still beat them. And I hope your President manages to get rid of himself soon, he’s trying hard enough.
I have much I want to say, but for now it boils down to one thing: Fuck John McCain. Seriously, fuck that guy. And the next time I hear anyone talk about how he’s “one of the good ones” or what a “maverick” he is, well…the proper thing to do would be to remind this hypothetical person that McCain dragged himself out of his sickbed just so he could march in lockstep with the Republican Death Panel. What would actually happen is that I would have to invent new swear words because the existing ones wouldn’t be sufficient to express my anger.
I emailed to thank my senators for voting nay.
What I find particularly disturbing is the motivation behind this. I’d say it occupies a small spectrum between self-interest/bought and paid for and outright (fuck you I got mine, so hurry up and die) malevolence.
I just told my Democratic senators to filibuster by amendment and use whatever other delaying tactics they can. You know the situation is dire when I’m actually willing to phone a stranger to try to do something about it.
Regarding geography and how it affects our ability to put pressure on congresspeople, I live in the suburbs of a very left-leaning city and have a passably decent Democratic congressman. The next district over, represented by one of those sham-moderate Republicans, is mostly very rural and conservative but extends into these same suburbs. I recently looked up the exact boundary between my district and that one and discovered that it’s within walking distance of my house. And it divides my neighborhood from the next one over, which is similar to mine, and probably still Democratic-leaning, but noticeably wealthier and whiter than mine.
It’s not really relevant to anything, but the geography of the tiny corner of the world that I can walk to from home has an outsized influence on my psyche. It’s weird to realize that gerrymandering is so granular that it can impinge on “my” home territory.
@ Schnookums
Charlie Pierce, who is actually somewhat acquainted with McCain, nailed it today when discussing the man’s infuriating failures of conscience: The Price of John McCain’s Republican Loyalty. Actually, Charlie Pierce nails pretty much everything, in my opinion.
“Senator Hirono cast her vote after a second surgery battling Stage 4 cancer. I think that deserves a standing ovation.”
– Christina Reynolds Tweet.
Yeah, where’s HER fucking allocades? Where is HER ticker-tape parade? Where are HER “She’s so brave to be here and let her voice be heard” platitudes by “good patriots”?
What’s that? She’s a Democrat, voted against this MTP that would take away healthcare to millions and her cancer is breast cancer?
Oh. Never mind. What was I thinking?
And yeah, that “maverick” shit has got to stop when all McCain does is gove good soundbites, then fucking votes in an entirely predicatable way: party over people.
Actually, I *am* going to say something nice about McCain. I wish upon him the same level of medical care that he’s voting for for the American Populace.
Surely that’s a nice sentiment, isn’t it?
Am busily tweeting at those US-Americans who think the rest of the developed world is full of death panels. I am afraid that I may have tweeted “liar, liar, pants on fire” at one of them. Hope your migraines get sorted out soon.
@D: Don’t most of these Republicans claim to be God-fearing Christians? Of the fire-and-brimstone variety, at that?
Do you think McCain ever wonders sometimes about what reward might be waiting for him after the cancer is finished with him, and whether that might depend on which way he voted on things like this?
@Robert Walker-Smith, Ray of Rays:
Feinstein is no angel if you ask me. That’s the Senator on the intel committee who ran interference for Clapper on behalf of the unconstitutional-domestic-surveillance-industrial-complex after Snowden’s whistleblowing, IIRC. Or are there multiple Feinsteins?
@ Surplus
Nope, same Feinstein. She may not be an angel, but I still trust a modron over the devils, demons, and yugoloths of the Republican party.
This makes me so sick. I’m probably going to lose my insurance. Insurance that I’ve been to scared to make use of this year for a problem I’ve been having because I don’t want to get diagnosed with anything.
I wonder how many of the BernieBros who’ve spent the past seven months spamming anybody who’s ever tweeted a word about Trump-Russia with “You’re just a NEOLIB’RUL who doesn’t care about health care!!!” are going to call Bernie out for laughing, hugging and dancing with McCain in honour of passing the bill.
That’s a rhetorical question.
And yes, that really happened. Am I allowed to call Bernie a monster now?
I don’t need angels representing my interests in Congress.
I just need compassionate and intelligent human beings who genuinely try to do the most good for the people they represent.
@SFHC
That depends. Did Bernie do it over email? Because then you’re allowed to say that, otherwise you’re not allowed to say anything bad about him because Hillary is the literal devil. /sarcasm
Trump Merit Badges:
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[This badge pre-emptively removed before DF can remove it because Content Policy]
Orb Touching
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Using the word “hell” in the first paragraph when talking to youth.
Nepotism
Cooking (books)
Politicking in the wrong place
Honestly I don’t care if this makes me sound like a conspiracy theorist but I have to say these things. I have increasingly come to hate that people saw Bernie Sanders as this messiah-like figure that would fix all our problems when he himself started out as a single issue dumbass. But recently I have learned something that while I don’t know is true I am past caring. Bernie Sander’s little campaign manager was the same as John McCain, and the thing about him was that he tried to make McCain a little more friendly to Russia. Bernie was used not quite like Jill Stein who was , shall we say all in having been in that damn meeting that Flynn went to and we have proof of her being there. He was played because he wanted to be a hero despite only doing that one march during the Civil Rights era and then nothing of any real substance while others clawed out any bit of equality they could get. If this does indeed cause me to die Bernie Sanders name will be one of the ones I curse with my dying breath.
It’s possible that Bernie was just happy to see that McCain had survived the brain surgery, really liked the speech, and that McC was back in good health (considering diagnosis), not celebrating the vote.
I was listening to the beginning of McC’s speech after the vote, and it sounded like he was about to announce his resignation. As Republicans go, I think McCain is one of the better ones, but that’s like saying, he smelled better than the other skunks.
@dreemr Oh, you and me both. Reasonable, considerate, not overly partisan, not thinking only of their base, that sort of thing would be so refreshing.
I don’t know how true this is but while they voted to start a debate for this monstrous bill it is truly dead now. The BCRA was indeed dead before now and with certain parts of it not meeting the requirements for reconciliation they would have need 60 votes. More or less right now they cannot go for repeal and replace but honestly this is a little confusing to me and I can only hope this debate actually gets us single payer but with the sanctimonious jackanapes I have had the displeasure of knowing I don’t know how likely that is.
BCRA = I can’t never see this without seeing BRCA, which is a breast cancer susceptibility gene. I think BCRA is about as beneficial to the public as BRCA, so it’s appropriate!