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S04.E05: The American Health Care Act


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Main Segment: The American Health Care Act

Other segments: International Women's Day, Wikileaks' March 2017 CIA disclosures
Guests: Thomas Kopache, Rob Corddry (voice-over)

 

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Another good episode. But I fear that John is only preaching to the choir. Those who need to hear and understand this (including that dumbass in the White House... or is he still on the golf course?) will not be watching. And if they see or hear anything about it, they won't listen.

Paul Ryan is an appalling excuse for a human being. To be so excited about making numbers look better while people die, to be so thrilled about the chance to dismantle a support network that millions of people cannot live without. I'm sure it'll work out nicely for him and his friends, but as some point people will have to realise that the economic theories he and his fellow Rand bullshitters believe in are crap. I've said it before, but if you give money to the rich, it does not 'trickle down' to the poor. The rich don't let it go.

So giving tax breaks to the rich is actually going to exacerbate American economic problems. It's going to make things worse for everyone but those rich people who can afford to live above it all. Still, if this bill gets to the Senate, I'm sure the Democrats will filibuster it, and McConnell won't want to use all his remaining political capital to defeat them.

The International Women's Day stuff was just sad. Putin being a chauvinistic douchebag is nothing new, but the sad thing is, I think he genuinely thinks this is how you be nice to women. Well, this and decriminalising domestic violence, of course. That poor San Antonio day time host. John was right, clearly Kimberley is the one who holds that show together. The guy didn't have a clue what he was doing. Bet she doesn't get a pay rise, though.

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In the opening of the show with the various pictures that flash by, one was 'Larry King tortoise' with 'Diego' underneath. What was that referring to? Maybe it was Larry King's birthday?

The American "Health Care" act is such a joke, except it's not funny. It really is just an excuse to cut taxes for the wealthy and reduce govt spending. It has absolutely nothing to do with health. Of course Americans are free to buy insurance. The big question is, How will millions of them buy it if they can't afford it without help from the govt? Uh, too bad. 

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Shouldn't they get another spokesman besides Catheter Cowboy? Surely the White House is onto him now. They need to take Trump by surprise and maybe hire an actress who looks like Ivanka or something. That'll get his attention.

Who was the congressman they showed who said "maybe poor people should invest in health care instead of buying new iPhones?" I didn't catch his name. I think he best represents the pervasive Republican belief that poor people are living high on the hog on the government dole and that all our economic woes can be solved by eliminating welfare. That's really what it all boils down to. It's actually less insidious of them to come right out and say so than pretending to care about helping the needy, like Paul Ryan does. Just say what you really believe and we can go from there. If you think you have to "trick us" by pretending you want to help people afford healthcare, you must know you're doing something wrong.

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It's just... exhausting to keep up with all of this, and that's as a non-resident. Kudos to all of you, who are directly impacted by the items that John reports on frequently who are keeping up the fight.

If there's as much opposition to this as John seems to indicate there is, and it still passes, I don't know what to think.

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4 hours ago, Danny Franks said:

Still, if this bill gets to the Senate, I'm sure the Democrats will filibuster it, and McConnell won't want to use all his remaining political capital to defeat them

That's the problem. Because it's a budget reconciliation issue, they can't use the filibuster. Jon said at the end of the show. The question will be if the gop senators who said it's "dead on arrival" will grow a spine and vote it down. 

4 hours ago, Danny Franks said:

But I fear that John is only preaching to the choir.

That's the problem, and Jon said as much too. So many people are just voting for people who hate them. But because practically no one votes, their votes have way more of an impact than they should. 

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49 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

Surely the White House is onto him now.

Kellyanne Conway is telling people their microwave ovens can take pictures and spy on them so I'm doubtful this White House is onto anything. 

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1 hour ago, iMonrey said:

Who was the congressman they showed who said "maybe poor people should invest in health care instead of buying new iPhones?" I didn't catch his name. I think he best represents the pervasive Republican belief that poor people are living high on the hog on the government dole and that all our economic woes can be solved by eliminating welfare. That's really what it all boils down to. It's actually less insidious of them to come right out and say so than pretending to care about helping the needy, like Paul Ryan does. Just say what you really believe and we can go from there. If you think you have to "trick us" by pretending you want to help people afford healthcare, you must know you're doing something wrong.

According to Trevor Noah, if they stop buying 33 iPhones a year, then they can afford health care!

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2 hours ago, iMonrey said:

Who was the congressman they showed who said "maybe poor people should invest in health care instead of buying new iPhones?" I didn't catch his name. I think he best represents the pervasive Republican belief that poor people are living high on the hog on the government dole and that all our economic woes can be solved by eliminating welfare. That's really what it all boils down to. It's actually less insidious of them to come right out and say so than pretending to care about helping the needy, like Paul Ryan does. Just say what you really believe and we can go from there. If you think you have to "trick us" by pretending you want to help people afford healthcare, you must know you're doing something wrong.

When I saw that comment the other day, I honestly just wanted to fall over and die because there is no hope. I get that an iPhone is a big expense. But it is not even a drop in the bucket compared to the cost of insurance and health care. On top of the belief that the poor are sitting pretty on welfare there's also this sense that people of lower socio-economic status don't deserve to have things. That comment reminded me of the shock of a Fox news report a few years ago where they reported on the fact that 99% of poor people had refrigerators. Yeah, they do. Those tend to come with the apartment when you rent it. Also, how exactly should one get by without a fridge?

But many in the GOP really feel that being poor is a moral failing and you deserve nothing good until you pull yourself up by your bootstraps. Your life should be work and sleep and if you dare to want to eat a meal or play some candy crush you deserve any bad thing that might befall you. It's disgusting.

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It's not even playing candy crush. People need phones for actual work. It's much less expensive to have a phone for scheduling, email, documents, etc., than a computer. There's no branch for my bank where I live, so the phone is the only way to access my account. I don't understand why "don't vote for people who hate you" is such a complicated concept. 

36 minutes ago, vibeology said:

That comment reminded me of the shock of a Fox news report a few years ago where they reported on the fact that 99% of poor people had refrigerators.

I bet they all have stoves too. Imagine!

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2 hours ago, ganesh said:

That's the problem. Because it's a budget reconciliation issue, they can't use the filibuster. Jon said at the end of the show. The question will be if the gop senators who said it's "dead on arrival" will grow a spine and vote it down. 

What's interesting, in watching last night's episode, is that there are many conservatives out there that think Paul Ryan's version of Ayn Randian health care in America is a bad idea. Sen. Tom Cotton (who I'm surprised Ollie didn't use last night) said it could very well destroy the GOP's chances for the 2018 midterms as well as the presidency in 2020. If some of those GOP senators don't grow a spine and decide to vote party first as usual, then it's all up to Drumph to decide whether he signs off on the destruction of Obamacare or vetoes it. And who knows what kind of a mood that tangerine nightmare will be in at that time.

Of course if they do destroy Obamacare, then Republicans will quickly find a way to distract the public's attention by dangling something shiny in front of them - like a ground war in the Middle East, which they can also use to bash Muslims around some more. And the media will eagerly oblige them as it gives them something else to cover instead of something icky like Obamacare's repeal and how it will affect millions. All the while making it more difficult for more Americans to vote, because ELECTION FRAUD! And they will remain in power, forever and ever, Amen. (yes, I am that cynical)

I rolled my eyes when I heard it was WikiLeaks that was behind the document dump of the CIA. Julian Assange stopped being a credible source of information a long time ago - if he ever had any credibility to begin with.

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Oliver is not alone: Advertisers seeking to speak directly to Trump pay a pretty penny to feature their products where Trump is most likely to see them. The president reportedly includes MSNBC’s Morning Joe as part of his early hours routine. (Co-hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski doubt Trump’s aides’ claims that he has scaled back his viewing.) The show counts other Washington elites including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Attorney General Jeff Sessions among its viewers.

“We’ve been hearing now for years that our show is the show that all the senators and congressmen watch,” says Scarborough. “The main difference is that we have a president that reacts in real time to what we’re saying on our show.”

This influential, reactive viewer translates to money: Morning Joe's ad rates have reportedly doubled since the election. A source close to the network confirms that Morning Joe’s strong brand, high ratings and an increase in demand from media buyers has driven up the price of advertisements, adding that this is a trend across certain properties on both MSNBC and other cable news channels.

 

With An Eye On Viewer-In-Chief Trump, Advertisers Drink Up 'Morning Joe'

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John's statement that Trump voters are going to get hit by this—and Catheter Cowboy's repeated question, "You get that, right?"—have numbers to back them up:

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/10/upshot/why-trump-supporters-have-the-most-to-lose-with-the-gop-repeal-bill.html?_r=0

Sorry, though, John, I absolutely could have told you without looking it up that Maurice and Robin (and younger brother Andy) pre-deceased Barry. :-(

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Oliver is not alone: Advertisers seeking to speak directly to Trump pay a pretty penny to feature their products where Trump is most likely to see them. The president reportedly includes MSNBC’s Morning Joe as part of his early hours routine. (Co-hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski doubt Trump’s aides’ claims that he has scaled back his viewing.) The show counts other Washington elites including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Attorney General Jeff Sessions among its viewers.

“We’ve been hearing now for years that our show is the show that all the senators and congressmen watch,” says Scarborough. “The main difference is that we have a president that reacts in real time to what we’re saying on our show.”

This influential, reactive viewer translates to money: Morning Joe's ad rates have reportedly doubled since the election. A source close to the network confirms that Morning Joe’s strong brand, high ratings and an increase in demand from media buyers has driven up the price of advertisements, adding that this is a trend across certain properties on both MSNBC and other cable news channels.

 

I think a couple days ago he unfollowed Joe & Mika on Twitter.   If advertisers want to get to Trump they'll have to use Fox & Friends or RT. 

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I thought John went too far with the 'which Bee Gees are dead?' stuff.

Oh, I don't know. It inspired me to Google them and see which ones were still alive - I honestly didn't know.

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