Come Heller high water…
- Hey, Rachel Maddow, it’s not earth-shattering news that the non-interesting pages of Trump’s 2005 tax return surfaced. If he didn’t leak it himself, I’ll eat my socks. (Notice how weak his objection has been. He wanted this out to show he pays taxes – or at least he did then – and to take attention off his phony claim that Obama spied on him.) But it would have been huge news if it had come with all the juicy stuff about who paid him money and who he owes money to. The laugh’s likely to be on him, ultimately, because somehow, some way those pages – and other releases – will surface. It’s only a matter of time.
- And, hey, stop picking on Kellyanne Conway. I suspect my microwave is spying on me, too. The toaster put it up to it. I don’t know what the toaster’s deal is, but the can opener said it’s ticked at me for stuffing an oversized bagel into it. So, OK, jeez, I’m sorry. Can you please stop burning things on purpose now? Appliances can be so temperamental.
- Sean Spicer this week said we can trust that Donald Trump is telling the truth except when he’s joking. So how can we tell when he’s joking? Easy. He’s joking when he gets caught saying something stupid, of course. This isn’t hard, people.
- I feel bad for Spicer. How’d you like your job to be explaining what your boss meant when he said something ridiculous?
- Spicer also said “the president used the word wiretaps in quotes to mean, broadly, surveillance and other activities.” Ah, so we need to interpret the jokes AND the air quotes. Gotcha. Is anyone writing all this down? Lot of rules.
- And, wait, what about his tone? Do we also have to interpret that, too? How about his facial gestures?
- If and when Republicans dismantle the Affordable Care Act, they own it and I don’t want to hear the term Obamacare ever again. The second it’s “repealed and replaced” and Donald Trump signs it, it officially becomes Trumpcare. Can’t wait. (Well, actually, I can. The ACA is a good, if flawed, thing. But we’re getting the government we asked for, good and hard, so it’s going away.)
- The White House keeps saying how awful Obamacare is because it requires people to have health insurance, as if it’s unconscionable for the government to require such a thing. But don’t we all have to buy car insurance? Isn’t that also a law? Why, yes it is. Is that next?
- The Congressional Budget Office, which is run by a Republican, says 14 million will lose health care next year under Trumpcare. The White House says that’s nonsense. And why is it nonsense? Duh. Because they disagree with it.
- Here’s the thing: These are people. If it’s 100 or 14 million, these are people – human beings – who won’t have health insurance. And they’ll be one illness or accident from losing everything. We’re at a point with health care costs that we might just as well turn over our salaries, retirement funds and life savings to the health insurance companies. And maybe the universities. And Wall Street looters. Together, they’re going to own it all someday anyway, so why not just get on with it?
- Stephen Colbert put this whole ACA mess this way: “Yesterday, the speaker of the House and personal trainer who high fives way too hard, Paul Ryan, said ‘Gosh, not as many people will get coverage’ and ‘gee-willikers, I need chemo’ and ‘cheese and crackers, I can’t afford to go to the doctor’ and ‘Holy Toledo, I should have notified my next of kin because, fiddlesticks, I’m dead.’ It doesn’t sound so bad when it’s folksy.”
- “I remain just one thing, and one thing only, and that is a clown. It places me on a far higher plane than any politician.” – Charlie Chaplin.
Image credit: Jack Lawrence
Tom says
14,000,000 Americans will lose their health insurance! Fourteen Million! Trump only lost the election by about Three Million. My family is only TWO Americans, but if we had not had health insurance a couple years ago, we might be down to ONE. And, that one survivor would have been utterly impoverished by the medical bills. I cannot imagine how the Republicans can believe this is okay.
Do they believe the bottom 14,000,000 Americans probably deserve to die? Most countries in the world have fewer than 14,000,000 inhabitants. And, know what? Probably about half of the Fourteen Million Americans who will lose their health insurance, probably about half voted for President Tirebiter!
Richie B says
The health care problem should not be a political football. Listen to Bernie. Health care for everyone. While we’re at it, make it the same health care for everyone. Rich or poor, you get the same. Billionaires get the same treatment as penniless bums.
Jennifer says
Can people be penniless without being “bums”?
Patricia says
That should include congress’s healthcare right?
Working Dad says
Obamacare is nothing but a tax increase on working Americans. Due to Obamacare my premiums, copays and deductible are all far higher. It is strictly a tax increase. My healthcareand coverage have not improved at all from what I previously earned through my employer.
End Obamacare immediately and allow full free market competition for health coverage. Allow people the freedom to choose their coverage as they see fit.
Let’s further look into the taxpayer burden that illegal aliens generate each year. Those dollar amounts should be zero. Let’s make that reform and savings happen.
Working Dad says
Here is a nice listing showing the increased taxes passed onto working Americans by Obamacare. It is nothing but a tax increase.
https://jeffduncan.house.gov/full-list-obamacare-tax-hikes
Teddy Luba says
The question is what do you do with the working poor? They can’t afford the premiums set by insurance companies.
Working Dad says
They can buy a less expensive plan in the free market of their chosing. Give citizens free market choices which go across all state lines. Get illegal aliens out of the welfare programs. Illegal aliens cost American taxpayers billions upon billions every year.
Teddy Luba says
Less expensive means less care which means their lives don’t mean as much since they are poor. As far as illegal aliens, they would not be here if it wasn’t for big shots hiring them for less wages. Let the big shots pay for their health care instead of the taxpayer. Illegal aliens is another form of slavery where big shots make the money and the true cost of that labor is put on the taxpayer. These people are Gods children and their health is as important as yours.
Fred says
“Less expensive means less care which means their lives don’t mean as much since they are poor.”
And that is the GOP philosophy in a nutshell.
Tom says
Daddy Dearest, You gave us a silly list of baloney from some South Carolina congressman. First, South Carolina is pretty much a different country from Michigan. Then: This is a disingenuous list of stuff that only benefits extremely rich people. Are you extremely rich? Oy. I guess not, because your posts on this web site lead us to believe you are not intelligent enough to be rich.
Please stop posting propaganda.
NativeOfMichigan says
Twitter-de-dee, Twiddle my thumbs,
The Dump likes to tweet ’til his fingers are numb,
Says his aides, “We are all concerned!”
But still he fiddles while democracy burns.
Jim III says
In 2010 san fran nancy pelosi proclaimed “that we to pass this legislation in order to find out what is in this bill.”
Fast forward to 2017 san fran nancy pelosi says that “we (Congress) needs to completely read and go over this bill before we pass it.”
I am in favor of a law or amendment to the Constitution that says that Congress cannot pass a law that exempts them from that they pass.
Fred says
Nice. You pointed out an example of hypocrisy. I am not sure how it helps us in this present situation though.
Tired of the BS says
Just go to single payer. Quit whining and pay the taxes necessary to take care of your fellow man.
Problem solved
Andrew Heller says
Thank you, Tired. Thank you. Yes. For the love of God. And speaking of God, isn’t it amazing that the party that aligns itself mostly with God is the party that will anything it can do not to help the poor, the weak and the sick. This country’s blindness to that fact amazes me.
Fred says
Just ask them; “What would Jesus say?” and watch while they fumble for an answer, give up and deflect.
Matthew Charles says
Amen to that
Teddy Luba says
Right on Andy. They must be reading a different bible than me and a lot of other people. Even Pope Francis is hard to follow for republicans. It amazes me. I always look forward to your commentary Andy, keep up the good work.
Andrew Heller says
Thanks, Teddy. I feel like a lone, sarcastic voice in the wilderness most days.
Cathy says
You speak for so many of us, Andrew. We appreciate your ‘sarcastic’ and wise voice. I’m also saddened by the lack of concern for those less fortunate, esp. by folks that claim a faith. There but by the grace go all of us~
Working Dad says
Jesus called upon his followers to help their fellow man of their own volition. He did not call on them to hand their money over to the Romans and hope it worked out.
I am sorry so many of you liberals are too stupid to understand the difference.
Fred says
Your lack of compassion and empathy is the point here, not the method of assistance.
Matthew Charles says
I agree about the tax statement being put out by Trump
Sad, prez. We have
Jim III says
Funny the people who do not read the bible are the first ones to use verses from the Bible to attack those of us who have read the Bible.
Yes, we are to help the poor, but that does not mean that we are to help them so much that they do not try to lift themselves up.
In Lake chapter 19 v. 15- 34, Jesus Christ talks about Lazarus the beggar and the rich man. Lazarus had nothing of known value in this world, but the clothes on his back. The rich man had it very good. That is until they both went through that birth process we call death. Lazarus was given literally a royal welcome to Paradise. The rich man ended up being tormented by his past misdeeds and knowing that he had not been as good as he could have been.
Today’s rich man type of person is a liberal. There are more rich democratic, liberal, and progressive congress critters than there are Republican rich men.
Liberals try to toot their horn how they are for protecting the planet earth, but in reality they are sometimes the biggest polluters. In the Dakota’s they were protesting the keystone pipe line,
When they were finally off the property they left behind enough trash to fill over 85 large dumpsters. At least 12 abandoned dogs. The EPA was rushing to clean up the mess before the spring rains came and washed a lot of it into the river that they were supposedly trying to protect.
FYI, from reading the Flint Journal about the pipe line that runs besides the Mackinaw Bridge, I think that it needs to shut down because it sounds like it is too dangerous to be used.
One pf the few things that the Flint Journal may be accurately writing about.
For Fred, you sound like you are a bully. You seem not to be able to come with any facts to support your positions. You resort to name calling and other put downs when someone brings up something that you do not like.
Fred says
I sound like a bully? I called someone names? I am sure you will present the facts to back up these outrageous claims, right after donald trump presents his facts to back up his “wire tapping” claims.
The last time I checked it was one the people on your side calling Liberals stupid. I am sure you gave him a brow beating for that one from your moral high ground.
Teddy Luba says
And the Trumpster isn’t rich, are you kidding me. He has taken advantage of so many people to get to where he’s at that it’s sickening. Oh and by the way I do read the bible but apparently interpret it much differently than you.
Tom says
Jim III, You seem nuts. The things you post here make no sense. Actually, cuckoo. Either, go for mental help, or learn to write better.