#53 - A Moment In Time

It was a single moment in time, but I am hopeful that historians will someday look back through the past and acknowledge that in the history of the US Senate, it was a momentous one.

Senator John McCain, returned to the floor of the Senate this week, just off his surgery for brain cancer, to help Republicans take up votes to repeal and replace the ACA, a position he has personally held for the last seven years.  He returned and cast the deciding vote to permit the process to move forward.  He voted for process. He voted for action. For the Republicans in the Senate, he saved both.

But when the votes were held, first for straight repeal, and then for repeal and replace, they failed, despite the Republican majority.  And so Mitch McConnell, who must have honed his political skills to obstruct and scheme back in grade school, came up with a plan to perpetuate the process.  The so-called Skinny Repeal, which Republican Senator Lindsey Graham called a “disaster” and a “fraud”, was intended to be passed only so that something, anything, could make its way into conference for reconciliation with the House bill.  It was intended to be passed with the promise from the House, that it would never be approved.  Yes, you read that correctly. 

At that point in time, Senator McCain who earlier in the week had called for  a return to Regular Order, a return to conference committee hearings and a return to bipartisan cooperation, decided that, despite the impact to his party and to a position he had personally held, it was time to draw a line in the sand.  Despite the last minute lobbying from McConnell, Vice President Pence and a last minute call from President Trump, McCain had had all he could stand.  Standing ten feet away from Mitch McConnell, with a “thumbs down” sign using his good, right arm, he let his Republican colleagues know that it was time to stop the madness and turn the page.  More importantly, he delivered the deeper message, that it was time to change.

There was a collective gasp in the room on the part of both Democrats and Republicans alike, as the realization sunk in that the fight was over.  And as some Democrats began to clap, they were immediately waved off by Minority Leader Chuck Schumer who understood the importance of the moment but knew, that this was only the beginning.  And this was no time to cheer.  As he would describe it later, the emotion he felt was not about “celebration”, it was “relief”.  And so with this perspective, Schumer rightly focused his praise for his Republican colleague Senator John McCain, thanking him for his leadership, for his call to return to Regular Order, holding out hope that maybe the Senate could return to better times when both sides would work together, and importantly acknowledging that both parties shared equally in the deterioration of their relationship.  

Some might accuse me of being naive, and I would admit it’s a very real possibility, but on this single point, I do hope I am right.  I want to believe that historians will be able to call out this moment as a turning point for our country, that it was so much more than just an important vote on an important topic, that it was the point in time where the leaders of our country did a collective gut check and said, maybe we can do better, maybe we can work together, maybe we can move the country forward.

I like to think that I have always been and always will be, a glass-half-full kind of guy

But still, there is the realization that we still have to deal with, this…

President Trump’s 2:25 AM tweet today:

“Let Obamacare Fail and then we will deal”

There you have it.  Our President, showcasing himself to be the selfish bully he has been all of his life, angry that he didn't get his way, stymied that he can't declare himself “a winner” and satisfy his never-ending ego, is now telling those Americans who depend on affordable health care, “I don't care about you”, solely because, it’s all about him.  It's always been, all about him.

This is the man who claimed he would Make America Great Again.

A few more Americans woke up this morning and for the first time really smelled the coffee and drank their first cup, hot and black with no cream or sugar.  And it began to sink in.  The man who they supported, the man they voted for, the man who promised that he would make America Great Again had to first, be great in his own right.  That man had to possess a moral compass that required him to make decisions on behalf of the many, on behalf of others even if it required extraordinary levels of self-sacrifice. That man has always been John McCain. That man has never been Donald Trump.

So, on behalf of many grateful Americans, thank you Senator McCain. Thank you for showing leadership all throughout your life. It's been one of the better ones in the history of our great country. And it is my fervent hope, that it will be many years before are we forced to celebrate such a truly accomplished life.

And so Mr. President, if you are not going to participate and truly help the rest of us Make America Great Again, the please get out of the way and go home.  However, if you can ever find the strength to really look yourself in the mirror and make the patriotic decision to jump off the Trump Train and climb on board the American one, we will extend a helping hand and help you get there.  It's not too late sir, not even for you.

You may not understand, this is why America has always been and will always be so much more than just great.  This is why our country remains exceptional.  

#52 - A Slow Day in the News Cycle

I have to be honest, I'm struggling a bit.  What should I write about today?

1) Should I pick up on the President’s new Director of Communications, Anthony Scaramucci, who is carrying the banner of the President, when he echoes the words of his beloved leader that, “We are going to be winning so much, we are going to get tired of winning”.  Yes Tony, I agree completely.  It's been one of my biggest desires for the longest time now, second only to my burning desire to catch the next episode of Real Housewives of Poughkeepsie.  Mooch the Smooch went on to proclaim his undying support for President Trump stating that Trump is “the smartest person that I’ve ever worked for” with “intuition” and “temperament that I have never seen”.  (sigh….), it's only been a week, but I miss Spicey already.

The Mooch clearly wanted to come on the scene and make a big splash, in an effort to curry favor with the Big Guy, he has become the point person on weeding out leaks in the White House.  So, he is going to “hermetically seal” the communications team and call out the other senior members of the administration, specifically Reince Priebus for being the source of the leaks.  I don't watch reality TV shows, so it's particularly annoying when I turn on the news and am forced to watch one of the worst on TV.

I would also observe that we seem to be getting leaks about the White House’s anti-leaking strategy. I guess they have a little more work to do on that.

2)  Maybe I should write about the Big Guy’s obsession with denigrating one of his earliest conservative supporters and his hand-picked Attorney General, Jeff Sessions.  Mr. Trump seems to be suffering from a significant case of buyer's’ remorse, and is publicly airing his disappointment, despite noteworthy blow back from his conservative supporters.  By all accounts, love him or hate him, everyone, including the conservative base, has said that Sessions did the right thing by recusing himself from the Russian investigation, everyone except the Big Guy that is.  As such, this makes Sessions the President’s biggest object of scorn and ridicule on that little Twitter toy of his.

3)  One of the scariest pieces of news to leak out yesterday (the Mooch hasn't quite yet perfected his hermetical seal) has to deal with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson’s unhappiness with his role and the administration.  He seems bothered by battles with other members of the administration and still can't get over the fact that he has to play second fiddle to the 34 year old boy wonder who is going to save the world.  Richard Haas, who heads up the Council on Foreign Relations and who has also been critical of Obama on several issues, observed that Tillerson has not helped his cause any by not fighting for resources, by not getting experienced people in place, and for deciding to reorganize the State Department at a time when the sky is falling.  Sure, Haas seems to have a point, but still I worry.  Aside from the members of the President’s national security team, Tillerson, while having no real diplomatic experience, out of all the other members of Trump’s Cabinet, at least has experience in ...something.  And with little things like North Korea taking a back seat to the President’s campaign rallies (you were under the impression that the campaign was over?) and his trips to Mira Lago, six plus months into this new administration, I would just hate to lose anyone in the administration who looks like they actually may have a head on their shoulders.

4). I could talk about the President's success re: his announcement of 13,000 jobs coming to Wisconsin (Paul Ryan’s home state) with Chinese company FoxxCon.   While it should be considered a small win for the President, it did not come without a cost.  FoxxCon will receive $3 billion in tax breaks, which works out to $230,000 per employee.  I know, you’re thinking, wouldn't it be simpler to just give the money away?  Perhaps, but the truth is all politicians have done this at different times, Obama gave $500 million to a solar panel company early in his administration and Rhode Island gave $40 million to former Red Sox ace and conservative talk show personality, Curt Schilling, for his computer gaming company and didn't even get a new rev of Pac Man for their troubles..  I do want to point out that the great state of Massachusetts, as liberal as we are, was smart enough to pass on this last fiasco.  

The point here is that giving away $3 billion doesn't exactly come under the category of draining the swamp.

5) I could actually write a short novella about the President’s expansive three-part tweet late yesterday in which he announced his new policy to ban transgender persons from the military because of the higher cost of their medical care.  In typical Trump fashion, he neglected to tell anyone else of his latest idea, including his communications team, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the conservatives in the House who only wanted him to eliminate the cost of the medical care, not actually Transgender persons from serving.  Now, everyone in country is scratching their heads, the LGBTQ community has declared war, and Vladimir Putin is laughing his ass off.     

6) Finally, I could choose to write about the Chief Scout of the Boy Scouts of America who apologized today for the behavior of our President when he spoke to the group on Tuesday..   On this day, we are all Boy Scouts, insulted by the actions of our President, and we apologize to the entire world and to God, for one of the dumbest things in the history of the planet, voting this dweeb into office.

Am I forgetting anything? Health Care?  The Russian Investigation?

Still, I’m unclear. What should I write about today? Any ideas?

#51 - The Straight Talk Tour

I was reminded today, back when I used to vote Republican, why I was pulling for Senator John McCain in his 2000 campaign for the Republican nominee for president against George W. Bush.  His message back them focused on political reform and "straight talk" and it appealed to moderate Republican and independent voters alike, including me.  Unfortunately, his campaign effectively came to an end when Bush won the South Carolina primary in large part due to the underground smear campaign run against McCain.  My disappointment with his loss, was the start of my shift to the left.

And so John McCain’s return to the Senate today, after being diagnosed with a form of brain cancer which offered little hope, was a joy to see in large part, just because he showed up.

But Senator McCain intended to do more today than just wave to his fans, and he showed why he is one of the few remaining lions in the Senate, when he called out both parties, pointing out the error of their ways.

"We're getting nothing done, my friends. We're getting nothing done," he said, arguing that both sides were to blame for polarizing the process of making laws and funding the government.

"Our deliberations today ... are more partisan, more tribal ... (than) at any time than I can remember. They haven't been overburdened by greatness lately," he said, offering a lesson of civics and civility as his fellow senators on both sides of aisle listened with the utmost respect.

He said both sides had erred by trying to remake health care on a purely partisan basis, and without open debate.   "I don't think that is going to work in the end, and it probably shouldn't," he said in in remarks that had to be especially tough for Mitch McConnell.

It’s been 17 years since the Straight Talk Tour campaigned around the country, and despite the presence of brain cancer in one of the few real American heroes, it remains alive and well in Arizona.

#50 - Seeing the Forest Through the Trees

Can Donald Trump and the Republican leadership actually see the forest through the trees?

At the moment, the answer to this question seems to be “No”.

There is a mad dash to commence discussions on the Senate floor and to begin debating a bill, some bill, as early as today, about…..well, no one appears to be quite sure.  The rumor is it could be about repealing the Affordable Care Act (ACA), but the bookies aren't taking any bets because they are not sure what they would be betting on.

Is Donald Trump so eager for a win, any win that he keeps ratcheting up the pressure on Senate Republicans to vote for it?  Even as he remains clueless as to what it is?  Even as he has failed to articulate his own ideas on the plan?

And isn't there a realization among good, smart, intelligent Republicans that this is a clear recipe for winning a battle, and losing the war?

According to a new Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll released last Thursday, the Affordable Care Act is significantly more popular than the House GOP plan to repeal and replace the law.  

The survey found that 41 percent of Americans say that the ACA is a good idea.  By comparison, just 16 percent said they see the House GOP plan as a good idea - a 7-point drop from the 23 percent approval it had shortly after it was passed in April.  Further, about 48 percent of respondents said that the House health care overhaul was a bad idea, according to the poll. (Source: The Hill).  I am not a politician, so what do I know, but it seems a bit odd that any politician would want to be seen as supporting such an unpopular construct.

[Note - it would be nice if we could get some polls comparing the ACA to the Senate plan, except we still don't know what that is]

As I lean left these days and as I am thoroughly disgusted by Republican actions over the last seven years, where they were a broken record calling the ACA a train wreck, and voting in the House to repeal it countless times, there is a side to me that would like to see them shoot themselves in the head and pass a bill which trails the favorability of the ACA by a margin of more than two to one. But just as a Republican win on a vote, any vote, would only provide a brief moment of euphoria, the same could be said of my sense of satisfaction from seeing these disingenuous men, who are supposed to represent leadership in our country, commit the first step toward their own political suicide.  The moment would not last.

So, no. the answer lies in putting politics aside, but here only Republican leaders can take the first step. as they control the House, the Senate and the Oval Office.  They must put an end to their short sighted motive of fulfilling a seven year promise, which no longer makes sense, and accept the realization that they will help themselves more in the long run if they slow the process down and bring Democrats to the table, so that both parties can share the responsibility and the outcome (good, bad or integer wise) of solving one out countries biggest challenges. 

Everyone has to see the forest through the trees, and that includes me.

#49 - The Seven Year Itch

The Republican Party’s inability and ineptitude to accomplish anything, ANYTHING, thus far, in the area of health care is a failure of historic proportions.

After seven years of railing against the Affordable Care Act (I am going to call it by its real name because apparently whenever you ask someone who is on this program, they like it, it’s that Obamacare thing that they just can't stand), after seven years of demonizing the former President and the Democrats for wait, wait, ….wait for it ….. for wanting to actually help people, after seven years and countless votes in the House to repeal the Affordable Care Act, and one that made its way through the Senate to the President’s desk, after seven years of obstruction, avoiding any efforts to discuss improvements, solely so they could, metaphorically speaking, pin a losing tale on the butt of the Democratic donkey, after their so-called populist Presidential candidate promised to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act with “something great” on the first day of his presidency, after all those years, they couldn't scratch their own itch, no matter how hard they tried.   Sadly it seems, they all fell victim to actually believing their own Republican bull elephant excrement.  And as elephants go, there was a lot of it to believe.

Everyone knows we need to fix the Affordable Care Act or alternatively repeal and replace it with something better.  EVERYONE.   Maybe, you want to think about sitting down with Democrats to actually reach some common ground.  Senator John McCain, one of the few remaining lions in the Senate, who sadly was just diagnosed with brain cancer, has lobbied for this.  And with the Tuesday Group in the House, you could actually work with Democrats to make things better instead of selfishly putting petty party politics over country. But you are in control, so only you can make it happen.  The truth is I don't care which way we go.  Let me say it again. At this point I don't care!  The Republicans own the House, the Senate and the Oval Office.  They control the discussion, the votes and the Oval Office, so more importantly, it doesn't matter what I care about.

And I’m sorry, but America does not deserve your rudderless President who  a) doesn’t have a friggin clue about any of the intricacies of the health care debate (“Who knew that health care could be so complex?”) b)  changes his opinion on this topic at least twice a day, c) would be happy with a simple insurance plan that reimbursed Americans for band aids but ignored cancer treatments, d) only wants to put a win on the board, any win, so he can celebrate in the Rose Garden with a marching band, a parade of tanks and a newly-made-in-America fire truck, and e) will blame everyone and anyone for any and all the failures of his administration, because of course, he is completely blameless.

He is your chosen leader, so you need to figure out what value he adds to the process. Because the rest of us are just baffled. 

You would do yourselves a favor to remember the image of former Speaker John Boehner who experienced one of the most privileged moments of his life, when the Pope made a rare visit to Capitol Hill in September 2015.  He left that visit a changed man.  The following day, out of the blue, he promptly resigned his powerful position as House Speaker, and left Congress. It would seem that the 50+ times he led the House in a vote to repeal the ACA, set him over the edge.  There he was, one of most powerful men in the country, with a huge shit-eating grin on his face, whistling  Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah, down the halls of this great institution as he left.  John went on to, catch-up on his fly fishing and predicted that the Republicans would never repeal Obamacare shortly after he kissed it all good bye.   Who among you saw this coming?

So for Chrissake you weenies, do something! Take a stand, draw a line, take a risk.  Stop worrying about self-preservation and do something.  It would be my hope that you would actually try to keep the neediest of our fellow countrymen in mind when you do, whatever the frig it is you that you are going to do, but I can't control that.  So, If you are going to repeal the ACA, then do it! It’s been seven years now, get it over with.  You're uncertainty and incompetence and disingenuous history has stalled the entire country and quite frankly, we are sick of it, and we are sick of you.

If you can't take a stand, then please, we need more of you to do a “John Boehner”, get out of the way, go home and maybe, just maybe, we’ll get lucky and the next person in line, the next person to follow you, will have some real balls.

How’s that itch boys?  Zip-a-dee-doo-dah, zip-a-dee-ay.

#48 - Incompetence Apparently is Hereditary – Who Knew?

I have written close to 50 pieces in the first half of 2017, and I would guess that more than half deal specifically with the sheer incompetence of Donald Trump and the members of the Trump Administration and more often than not when I have included comments from other politicians, I have focused on comments from Republicans, and I have done so for two reasons.   First, because it adds significant credibility to my positions, for if the comments were from Democrats, they could be dismissed as biased and self-serving, as Democrats concluded long ago that Donald Trump was better qualified to work in the sadly, now defunct Ringling Bros. and Barnum and Bailey Circus.  Second, because as someone who has voted Republican most of my life, I believe it showcases the fact that many good Republicans still have the integrity to put country over party and to speak out against the incompetent buffoon who we legally elected to be our President. (Please, don’t think that I hold a grudge against America for this, I don’t’.  For as is the case with the very best people, even the very best of countries can just have a bad day)

So, with that as a lead in, regarding Donald Trump Jr.’s meeting with a Russian lawyer during the 2016 campaign purportedly to obtain “dirt” on Hillary Clinton, let’s hear what several former Senior Republican campaign officials involved in recent Presidential campaigns have to say on the matter.   [Please note these quotes were obtained BEFORE Don Jr. released the detailed emails on his own, ahead of the NY Times, which included a statement from Don Jr.’s acquaintance that “This is obviously very high level and sensitive information but is part of Russia and its government’s support for Mr. Trump”.]

-        “I handled oppo (opposition research), not exactly high-minded side of campaigning, but a reality, but never ever from a foreign advisory”

o   Nicolle Wallace, Communications Director for Bush/Cheney 2004

-        “Senior presidential campaign officials don’t take meetings with nameless people. Doesn’t happen.”

o   Rick Tyler, Communication Director for Ted Cruz 2016

-         “Aside from the candidate himself, the campaign manager’s time is among the most valuable resource for any campaign…It would be very odd for campaign manager to appear at a meeting with a more-or-less random foreigner claiming they’re peddling opposition research”

o   Michael Steel, Senior Advisor to Jeb Bush 2016

-        “From experience: when working on a presidential campaign and…contacted by a foreigner, prudent to mention it to 1) Your Foreign Policy team 2) the FBI”

o   Katie Packer Beeson, Deputy Campaign Manager Romney/Ryan 2012

-        “If you can find someone in other presidential campaigns who has received oppo from foreign interests, please share”

o   Stuart Stevens, Chief Strategist Romney/Ryan 2012

-        “When Gore campaign was sent Bush debate (briefing) book, they called the FBI. If foreign interests offer you info on the former Secretary of State, you call the FBI

o   Stuart Stevens, Media Consultant Bush/Cheney 2004

In attempting to do damage control, after offering multiple explanations for the purpose of the meeting, Don Jr. rushed into the friendly arms of with Sean Hannity of Fox News, who asked Don Jr., if he told his father of the meeting, to which Don Jr. replied:

“It was such a nothing, there was nothing to tell, I wouldn’t have even remembered it, until you start scouring through this stuff.”

That’s not how your fellow Republican’s think about it Donny Boy. Not at all.

Oh, at this point, it’s not clear.  With no further disclosures, I doubt very much if you are legally guilty of perjury, or treason or collusion, or any felony or other charges that make most Democrats outright giddy, but you are guilty of one thing.  Your incompetence is clear cut, and when confronted with the reality of it, you lie through your teeth, and in that way, you are your father’s son, and I can’t think of anything much worse. 

#47 - The Retun of Rick "I was, am, and always will be, clueless" Perry

When Donald Trump promised his supporters in the Presidential campaign that he was going to “drain the swamp”’ not even his most ardent ones thought at the time that meant filling an important cabinet position with a man who has the intelligence of a single cell amoeba, but this is the bizarro world of Donald Trump, and nothing should surprise any of us anymore.

So when Trump appointed former Texas Governor and former Republican candidate for president, Rick Perry, to be his Secretary of Energy, on one level it was shocking, but on another, well…

During a visit to a coal plant in West Virginia on Thursday, Perry attempted to respond to a reporter’s question on the low cost of coal’s competition, shale gas, and offered up an economics lesson to the reporter in the process.

“Here’s a little economics lesson: supply and demand,” Perry said at the Longview Power Plant. “You put the supply out there, and demand will follow.”

What? What was that?  I don't think I heard you correctly.

According to Perry’s understanding of basic economics, there will always be a demand for coal as long as the industry produces it, no matter what the competition is, be it low cost shale gas, or renewable energy sources, and no matter what the demand is.

Ah, no Rick, I hate to burst your bubble, but that’s not how the free world thinks about supply and demand.  Let's provide a simple example.   If your local grocery store servicing 1000 families purchases 800,000 packages of toilet paper, which is used at the rate of one package per family per week, this means the store will be holding an 800 week supply of toilet paper.  And just because the supply is “out there” as you put it, doesn't mean these families are going to produce any excess levels of excrement.    

Can you follow that Rick?

His incorrect interpretation is particularly disturbing on several levels: (i) this is the man responsible for setting energy policy for our country, including (God help us) our nuclear energy. (ii) not only was his response totally off base, but he attempted to arrogantly dress down and lecture the reporter in the process (iii) we have told that President Donald Trump doesn't manage the details, but delegates to subordinates, so where does that leave us, when his subordinates can't comprehend the big pictures, much less the details?

If this were Perry’s only flub, we might just skip past it, but he has done a horrible job defending Trump’s position of pulling out of the Paris Accord and is challenged to discuss the science around climate change, but his most prominent faux pas, occurred in the Republican Debates leading up to the 2012 Presidential election.  You all remember it.  Perry, trying to establish his conservative chops with the Republican base, stated he would just outright eliminate three agencies from the federal government — except he could only name two of the three agencies

At the time, Perry said “And I will tell you, it’s three agencies of government when I get there that are gone — Commerce, Education, and, the, uh, what’s the third one there? Let’s see….ooops.”

The third agency to shutter which Perry was desperately searching for in that debate, was the Department of Energy… that’s right, the agency he now runs.

I know what you’re thinking, and you are right.   On my most creative day, I couldn't make this stuff up. 

#46 - The 400 Pound Fat Guy

The storyline continues on foreign soil. 

At a press conference in Poland with the Polish President Duda, ahead of the G-20 summit in Germany, President Trump in responding to a question on Russian interference in the US elections, would not focus on Russia, sticking to his claim that it could have been Russia, it could have been China, it could have been a lot of other countries, it could have been a lot of other people, and stating that it's been going on for a long time, for many many years.  Nobody really knows. 

In bolstering his case to his world, that we can't be certain, he continued the storyline that the intelligence communities failed in their analysis of WMD in Iraq, failed miserably, implying that we can't trust their assessment, some 15 years later, that Russia was the offender, and that he knows better.   Of course he does, what were we thinking?

So, I guess we should just defund CIA, the NSA, and have Jared pick up the intelligence work on the weekends when he’s not skiing in Vale.  Yes, that sound like a plan. Think of the money we will save.  

President Trump is quick to point out that when Barack Obama was informed in August 2016 about Russian interference, he did nothing prior to the November 2016 election, because he thought Hillary was going to win the election.  

So, when Barack Obama was faced with the issue, it was Russia.  Conversely and perversely, when the Donald has to face the same issue, he won't disavow his 400 pound fat guy theory.  

Welcome to new reality TV show, the Presidential Apprentice.   It's bound to be a hit with 36% of the US population, at least in the beginning, until even they grow weary of it over time, and many of them will.  The rest of the country will be watching CNN.