Mehdi's Monday morning update on the senators voting to reopen the government without a guarantee on healthcare; the BBC rolling over for Donald Trump; and Kathy Hochul's clash with Zohran Mamdani.
Thank you Zeteo and Mehdi for today's perfectly accurate headline. As a Virginian voter, I'll be banging my head against my desk wondering why I voted for Tim Kaine. 😖
Regarding the current record-breaking shutdown of the federal government caused by the heartless MAGAts, last evening before I retired for the night there were rumblings that some Dems might throw in the towel and join them to reopen the government. After weeks of the Dems holding firm, surely they would, to quote Nancy Reagan, "Just say no." After the stunning results of last week's elections, this would give the Dems validation that their strategy was working. Surely, they would stay the course and turn up the heat on the MAGAts on behalf of the American people. Alas, true to form, they did no such thing: THEY CAVED. I am not unsympathetic about the pain being inflicted on federal workers and those who rely on government assistance for vital services. However, it seems to me that this short-term gain will result in long-term pain. All this did was to teach the MAGAts to sit back and wait for the Dems to capitulate as usual.
While I understand your frustration about the “surrender,” it’s easy to storm the ramparts when someone else is doing it. In this case, the storm troops are government workers who aren’t getting paid and may be losing their jobs, people losing SNAP and other benefits, and people who need government services that aren’t being provided, including anyone who needs to fly anywhere. Asking these people to continue to sacrifice in the expectation that Trump, who hates Obamacare viciously and irrationally, is going to extend the Obamacare subsidies just does’t make sense. The Democrats made their point, got big electoral victories, got protections for federal workers, and can now force Republican senators to vote on the issue. I feel bad for the people whose health care costs will rise, but the Democrats simply do not have the power to prevent that outcome.
You’re right, I don’t. And if I believed there was a reasonable chance Trump would accept Obamacare extension — a chance big enough to justify the pain the shutdown was inflicting and would have continued to inflict — I would have a different view. But I don’t believe it. Do you?
Every single Democrat running as a moderate must be primaried! Harris lost because she was business as usual and the people won't accept a just little better. They know the system is broken, and ignoring that got us Trump. Now we are losing our freedom. The John Quincy Adams question was too easy.
To say that I’m disappointed, it is to nice!! I hope people understands that this is the outcome from Corporate, AIPAC democrats. They are owned as many others with AIPAC’s support. Hope people sees the difference now. Reinventing this party, it means that we need a progressive majority. I had enough of their corruption. Yet, while we beg and struggle, Chuck Schumer guarantees 3.8B for apartheid Israel’s and their free healthcare. Don’t ever want to hear, that Zohran is wrong because he is a socialist. I’ll take him 100 over one of these corrupt AIPAC politicians!
Does anyone actually envision that the situation will improve for those reliant on SNAP, medicaid, or ACA? Yes, the government workers are not being paid (well, Congress is one exception.) Any many hundreds of thousands have been laid off due to "AI." What possible evidence do you have that their lives will be better once the shutdown ends? You envision some short-term gain? I don't believe them, and neither should anyone else. This Administration DOESN'T CARE about the poor, the working class. They want to shrink the government and drown it in the bathtub (remember Grover Norquist?) They want to horde money and resources for themselves and their criminal cronies. The Dems are fully complicit in this extortion, and have been since at least Bubba. I called Schumer, and my own disgraceful geezer Durbin. They have no shame. They've got theirs, so no real price to pay for them, regardless.
These idiots just opened the door for some republicraps to take their seats..adding this : This will be my comment all day today: If their excuse to fold is SNAP forget about it. The states that care have started to organize so we would keep these people fed. And yet now these "dems" handed any of their 8 senate seats up for election into a nasty 2026 midterm .... FYI Durbin, a replicrap is going to have a blast with this one in 2026.... are they not aware that if Obama's name is connected to anything trump will go to endless depths to destroy it... ACA is gone you fools.. Interesting trump demanded, last night, the SNAP food not be dispursed.. is that because he knew these 8 were folding? Or just strange timing?
Dick Durbin, fortunately, is retiring at the end of his term. Hopefully we'll finally get some decent senators in Illinois. But I guess he could not care less about people so he's voting however he sees fit. The man is a republican!
This recent round of pardons by PedoPrez leaves no question that he is a quisling.
Schumer is a cowardly “leader” negotiating with the seven Dems plus Angus King to fold and needs to be ousted asap. He’s still treating this shit show as “politics as usual” by following the advice of his brother Robert, longtime partner at Paul Weiss.
The "formula" for Citizens United enables Republicans to be boldly corrupt and Democrats to throw the fight. Either way monied interests get their way. Corporate Democrats and Republicans beholding to donors over Americans must go. #SchumerMustGo
Agreed. It is very uncertain if there will be any further elections! We need to live in the present. These people are elected by the people but are unwilling to work for the people who elected them. The congress, executive and judicial folks have the best healthcare in this nation and it is paid for by we the taxpayers. Now we the taxpayers and voters are ignored when it comes to what we want. These folks are nothing more than a bunch of gutless fools. It is time to get rid of the democrats. There is absolutely no justification to their abhorrent behavior. Remember you are what you support and that makes this group guilty by collusion in all of the crimes committed against the American people by the party of mendacity!
Of course it wasn't just those 8 traitors; it was a set up by the Democrat's "leadership". They needed 8 votes, so 8 of them took the fall for the rest, 8 who had nothing to lose. So now the whole damage of the shut down is on the Dems; it served no purpose at all. A big win for the fascists.
Senate Democrats never would have caved without the encouragement and a final green light from Chuck Schumer.
The Senator from Jerusalem voted against it because he doesn't want the blame, but make no mistake, this is another Schumer betrayal and capitulation.
Schumer must go. Perhaps in retirement, he can spend more time with his imaginary Republican friends and constituents from Long Island - the Baileys.
I wonder when he starts to work for this country!
Thank you Zeteo and Mehdi for today's perfectly accurate headline. As a Virginian voter, I'll be banging my head against my desk wondering why I voted for Tim Kaine. 😖
Regarding the current record-breaking shutdown of the federal government caused by the heartless MAGAts, last evening before I retired for the night there were rumblings that some Dems might throw in the towel and join them to reopen the government. After weeks of the Dems holding firm, surely they would, to quote Nancy Reagan, "Just say no." After the stunning results of last week's elections, this would give the Dems validation that their strategy was working. Surely, they would stay the course and turn up the heat on the MAGAts on behalf of the American people. Alas, true to form, they did no such thing: THEY CAVED. I am not unsympathetic about the pain being inflicted on federal workers and those who rely on government assistance for vital services. However, it seems to me that this short-term gain will result in long-term pain. All this did was to teach the MAGAts to sit back and wait for the Dems to capitulate as usual.
While I understand your frustration about the “surrender,” it’s easy to storm the ramparts when someone else is doing it. In this case, the storm troops are government workers who aren’t getting paid and may be losing their jobs, people losing SNAP and other benefits, and people who need government services that aren’t being provided, including anyone who needs to fly anywhere. Asking these people to continue to sacrifice in the expectation that Trump, who hates Obamacare viciously and irrationally, is going to extend the Obamacare subsidies just does’t make sense. The Democrats made their point, got big electoral victories, got protections for federal workers, and can now force Republican senators to vote on the issue. I feel bad for the people whose health care costs will rise, but the Democrats simply do not have the power to prevent that outcome.
I’ll have to assume you don’t need coverage under the ACA.
You’re right, I don’t. And if I believed there was a reasonable chance Trump would accept Obamacare extension — a chance big enough to justify the pain the shutdown was inflicting and would have continued to inflict — I would have a different view. But I don’t believe it. Do you?
The shutdown was the only leverage we had. And we fucked it up.
Every single Democrat running as a moderate must be primaried! Harris lost because she was business as usual and the people won't accept a just little better. They know the system is broken, and ignoring that got us Trump. Now we are losing our freedom. The John Quincy Adams question was too easy.
To say that I’m disappointed, it is to nice!! I hope people understands that this is the outcome from Corporate, AIPAC democrats. They are owned as many others with AIPAC’s support. Hope people sees the difference now. Reinventing this party, it means that we need a progressive majority. I had enough of their corruption. Yet, while we beg and struggle, Chuck Schumer guarantees 3.8B for apartheid Israel’s and their free healthcare. Don’t ever want to hear, that Zohran is wrong because he is a socialist. I’ll take him 100 over one of these corrupt AIPAC politicians!
Does anyone actually envision that the situation will improve for those reliant on SNAP, medicaid, or ACA? Yes, the government workers are not being paid (well, Congress is one exception.) Any many hundreds of thousands have been laid off due to "AI." What possible evidence do you have that their lives will be better once the shutdown ends? You envision some short-term gain? I don't believe them, and neither should anyone else. This Administration DOESN'T CARE about the poor, the working class. They want to shrink the government and drown it in the bathtub (remember Grover Norquist?) They want to horde money and resources for themselves and their criminal cronies. The Dems are fully complicit in this extortion, and have been since at least Bubba. I called Schumer, and my own disgraceful geezer Durbin. They have no shame. They've got theirs, so no real price to pay for them, regardless.
These idiots just opened the door for some republicraps to take their seats..adding this : This will be my comment all day today: If their excuse to fold is SNAP forget about it. The states that care have started to organize so we would keep these people fed. And yet now these "dems" handed any of their 8 senate seats up for election into a nasty 2026 midterm .... FYI Durbin, a replicrap is going to have a blast with this one in 2026.... are they not aware that if Obama's name is connected to anything trump will go to endless depths to destroy it... ACA is gone you fools.. Interesting trump demanded, last night, the SNAP food not be dispursed.. is that because he knew these 8 were folding? Or just strange timing?
Dick Durbin, fortunately, is retiring at the end of his term. Hopefully we'll finally get some decent senators in Illinois. But I guess he could not care less about people so he's voting however he sees fit. The man is a republican!
Indeed... republiCRAP
This recent round of pardons by PedoPrez leaves no question that he is a quisling.
Schumer is a cowardly “leader” negotiating with the seven Dems plus Angus King to fold and needs to be ousted asap. He’s still treating this shit show as “politics as usual” by following the advice of his brother Robert, longtime partner at Paul Weiss.
Thanks to some of these dems trump is able to continue to win at losing. Shameful.
They all need to be primaried
The "formula" for Citizens United enables Republicans to be boldly corrupt and Democrats to throw the fight. Either way monied interests get their way. Corporate Democrats and Republicans beholding to donors over Americans must go. #SchumerMustGo
I am really appreciating having Zeteo First Draft in my morning inbox! Thank you, Mehdi!
Agreed. It is very uncertain if there will be any further elections! We need to live in the present. These people are elected by the people but are unwilling to work for the people who elected them. The congress, executive and judicial folks have the best healthcare in this nation and it is paid for by we the taxpayers. Now we the taxpayers and voters are ignored when it comes to what we want. These folks are nothing more than a bunch of gutless fools. It is time to get rid of the democrats. There is absolutely no justification to their abhorrent behavior. Remember you are what you support and that makes this group guilty by collusion in all of the crimes committed against the American people by the party of mendacity!
Suspect the overwhelming election of the Muslim Mamdani as NYC Mayor shook up those 8 Israel funded Dem. senators to crap out of the shutdown?
Of course it wasn't just those 8 traitors; it was a set up by the Democrat's "leadership". They needed 8 votes, so 8 of them took the fall for the rest, 8 who had nothing to lose. So now the whole damage of the shut down is on the Dems; it served no purpose at all. A big win for the fascists.