Red Mosquito

Strat wrote:I can't believe Sessions can get up there and let that shit come out of his mouth. With a straight face.

"uh, i didnt recollect it until i saw the news report"

Geezes christ.

The best part is his wife nodding in silent support right next to him the whole time. Either she's a brilliant legal mind who can see that he's riding a razor thin line, or she's a nincompoop who believes her husband when he tells her "Everything's going to be fine."

tragabigzanda wrote:

Strat wrote:I can't believe Sessions can get up there and let that shit come out of his mouth. With a straight face.

"uh, i didnt recollect it until i saw the news report"

Geezes christ.

The best part is his wife nodding in silent support right next to him the whole time. Either she's a brilliant legal mind who can see that he's riding a razor thin line, or she's a nincompoop who believes her husband when he tells her "Everything's going to be fine."

I have a feeling he threatened to make her watch him masturbate if she spoke up.

Jeffries is brutal.

In advance: this seems to suffer from a blend of being way too vague to be something, and way too openly said to be nefarious. But it's a story right now.

Hard to overstate how impactful this could be re:the future of the party. We're seeing with the tax bill and health care efforts just how powerful Republican megadonors are.

McParadigm wrote:Hard to overstate how impactful this could be re:the future of the party. We're seeing with the tax bill and health care efforts just how powerful Republican megadonors are.

But isn't this exactly what Bannon wants? A further divide between the establishment and the deplorables?

tragabigzanda wrote:

McParadigm wrote:Hard to overstate how impactful this could be re:the future of the party. We're seeing with the tax bill and health care efforts just how powerful Republican megadonors are.

But isn't this exactly what Bannon wants? A further divide between the establishment and the deplorables?

I'm increasingly skeptical that Bannon is anything other than another unremarkable would-be political strategist. All the Jokeresque talk is just weaponized fear-mongering aimed at intimidating party figureheads who don't play along.

His whole game has been to work towards replacing old school Republicans with people who think more like him. After the election, he sort of had major donor backing, and he certainly had the base via his media support network. So Republicans in office felt powerless. Those who were in danger of drawing his ire began retiring or planning for it, those who were liked by him kept quiet while their friends were targeted, and every new public relations nightmare was delicately threaded to avoid angering Steve.

Now his chosen candidate in a major race (one that should be TOTALLY SAFE for the party) is backfiring in a way that is truly incredible. Donors are reconsidering, officials are defying him and getting positive press for it, and even most national Republican voters now want Moore gone. These are the kinds of moments that help invertebrates grow spinal columns, even if they be little ones.

Sounds like the ACA mandate is back on the chopping block.

Gotta pay for those rich people tax cuts somehow.

McParadigm wrote: Now his chosen candidate in a major race (one that should be TOTALLY SAFE for the party) is backfiring in a way that is truly incredible. Donors are reconsidering, officials are defying him and getting positive press for it, and even most national Republican voters now want Moore gone. These are the kinds of moments that help invertebrates grow spinal columns, even if they be little ones.

McParadigm wrote:Sounds like the ACA mandate is back on the chopping block.

Gotta pay for those rich people tax cuts somehow.

Well and if the mandate goes, doesn't that mean the subsidies go to by necessity?

tragabigzanda wrote:

McParadigm wrote:Sounds like the ACA mandate is back on the chopping block.

Gotta pay for those rich people tax cuts somehow.

Well and if the mandate goes, doesn't that mean the subsidies go to by necessity?

Unlikely, less than 5% of tax payers were subject to it.


First line (*ignore the red circle, it's part of the image):

I still find the individual mandate to be the most despicable part of the ACA.

I don't understand how repealing the ACA would result in another $900B in subsidies? Unless I'm reading that wrong?

CBO last month predicted premium increases by 10% and 13 million more uninsured if the mandate goes.

Ah. I get the premium increase, but I wonder what sorts of costs they're including in the 13M more uninsured?

tragabigzanda wrote:Ah. I get the premium increase, but I wonder what sorts of costs they're including in the 13M more uninsured?

According to the CBO report cited above:

Those effects would occur mainly because healthier people would be less likely to obtain insurance and because, especially in the nongroup market, the resulting increases in premiums would cause more people to not purchase insurance.

Which makes me wonder... if you can’t afford coverage and don’t pace the mandate, do you go to debtors prison?

Bi_3 wrote:

tragabigzanda wrote:Ah. I get the premium increase, but I wonder what sorts of costs they're including in the 13M more uninsured?

According to the CBO report cited above:

Those effects would occur mainly because healthier people would be less likely to obtain insurance and because, especially in the nongroup market, the resulting increases in premiums would cause more people to not purchase insurance.

Which makes me wonder... if you can’t afford coverage and don’t pace the mandate, do you go to debtors prison?

But...Isn't this in relation to a repealed mandate?

As for the current laws, I believe you see a tax penalty if you can't demonstrate that you've met the mandate (or at least that's how it was in MA Romneycare). But I suspect that for those below the poverty line who are already claiming the standard deduction, you don't see a penalty.

Bi_3 wrote:

tragabigzanda wrote:Ah. I get the premium increase, but I wonder what sorts of costs they're including in the 13M more uninsured?

According to the CBO report cited above:

Those effects would occur mainly because healthier people would be less likely to obtain insurance and because, especially in the nongroup market, the resulting increases in premiums would cause more people to not purchase insurance.

Which makes me wonder... if you can’t afford coverage and don’t pace the mandate, do you go to debtors prison?

There are exemptions based on certain hardships (i.e. finances), and if you're only uncovered for a few months it doesn't count. Medicaid eligibility was extended to around 140% the poverty line, with the intention that *that* would provide coverage for low income individuals and families.

There is also a 25 billion dollar a year cut to Medicare in the new bill, which will drive some retirees into Medicaid's arms and could create additional problems for the program.

Oh. There is also the APTC, available to lower costs for households with an income of up to 400% of the poverty line.