Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

So it was an October Surprise A Day, like an Advent calendar but for crime.

Republicans cannot even be trusted with their own money.

Pessimism assures that nothing of any importance will change.

I’d hate to be the candidate who lost to this guy.

Republican also-rans: four mules fighting over a turnip.

It’s the corruption, stupid.

Anyone who bans teaching American history has no right to shape America’s future.

It’s all just conspiracy shit beamed down from the mothership.

Consistently wrong since 2002

Never give a known liar the benefit of the doubt.

This isn’t Democrats spending madly. This is government catching up.

There is no compromise when it comes to body autonomy. You either have it or you do not.

Every reporter and pundit should have to declare if they ever vacationed with a billionaire.

Republicans want to make it harder to vote and easier for them to cheat.

Following reporting rules is only for the little people, apparently.

fuckem (in honor of the late great efgoldman)

Jesus watching the most hateful people claiming to be his followers

There are no moderate republicans – only extremists and cowards.

A norm that restrains only one side really is not a norm – it is a trap.

Baby steps, because the Republican Party is full of angry babies.

Since we are repeating ourselves, let me just say fuck that.

Not rolling over. fuck you, make me.

The republican caucus is covering themselves with something, and it is not glory.

Fundamental belief of white supremacy: white people are presumed innocent, minorities are presumed guilty.

You are here: Home / Economics / Fuck The Middle-Class / Now On to the Next Phase of the Looting

Now On to the Next Phase of the Looting

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Pete Peterson might be dead, but the GOP quest to gut Medicare and Social Security marches on:

The financial future of the part of Medicare that pays older Americans’ hospital bills has deteriorated significantly, according to an annual government report that forecasts that the trust fund will be depleted by 2026 — three years sooner than expected a year ago.

The report, issued Tuesday by a quartet of Trump administration officials who are trustees for Medicare and Social Security, reveals that policy changes ushered in by the president and the Republican Congress are weakening the financial underpinnings of the already-fragile insurance program.

According to the report, less money will be flowing into the hospital-care trust fund in part because the tax law passed this year will cause the government to collect less in income taxes. In addition, lower wages last year will translate into lower payroll taxes.

As revenue slips, hospital expenses will increase, the report says. A senior government official who briefed reporters on it said that part of that increase is because the tax law will, starting next year, end enforcement of the Affordable Care Act’s requirement that most Americans carry health insurance. As a result, hospitals are predicted to have more uninsured patients, in turn requiring the Medicare program to pay more for such uncompensated care.

Literally everything the Republicans are doing is a direct attack on the American people.

Reader Interactions

64Comments

  1. 1.

    ruemara

    Funny, considering his base is made up of a lot of people who need those programs. My feeling has been that liberals need to build funds for their own to help them survive the next couple of years. Let the devil take his own.

  3. 3.

    wmd

    I’m on a mobile, but I read that the report also says eliminating the cap would allow higher benefits. This was from “social security works” progressive email list.

    I have the chief Actuary’s report bookmarked on my home computer. Read it within a month of its release.

  4. 4.

    TenguPhule

    @ruemara:

    My feeling has been that liberals need to build funds for their own to help them survive the next couple of years.

    Step 2 of The GOP’s cunning plan is “Steal money from the Liberals.”

  5. 5.

    Hunter Gathers

    It’s good to know that my retirement and my son’s future may be fucked, but Trump’s sticking it to the blacks in the NFL, so there’s that.

  6. 6.

    TenguPhule

    Literally everything the Republicans are doing is a direct attack on the American people.

    Assuming we manage to retake power, the Republican party needs to be outlawed as a domestic terrorist organization and all current members must be regarded as active terrorists until proven otherwise.

  7. 7.

    TenguPhule

    a quartet of Trump administration officials who are trustees for Medicare and Social Security

    What is, “Things utterly horrifying to see in a sentence together”, Alex?

  8. 8.

    Jeffro

    Highly progressive income taxes will solve this shit and then some. Did I say highly? I meant HIGHLY.

    Like, close to ‘Bane in Dark Knight Rises’ level of soaking the rich. It’s that or tumbrels and pikes, 1%ers

  9. 9.

    debbie

    McConnell canceled the August recess, so you know they’ll be ramming all kinds of shit through.

  11. 11.

    randy khan

    @debbie:

    I think the entire purpose of cancelling the recess is to make it harder for Dems to campaign. I can’t imagine McConnell would be stupid enough to even bring up legislation to gut Medicare. (I mean, those ads already are written; it would take only a few minutes to add something about the actual votes.)

  14. 14.

    TenguPhule

    @randy khan:

    I think the entire purpose of cancelling the recess is to make it harder for Dems to campaign. I can’t imagine McConnell would be stupid enough to even bring up legislation to gut Medicare. (I mean, those ads already are written; it would take only a few minutes to add something about the actual votes.)

    McConnell also plans to ram more Trump appointees down the throat of the Federal Courts.

  16. 16.

    Corner Stone

    @oatler.:

    Kill,kill, kill!
    wait, what are we doin’ now?

    Apparently there is a Power Play involved somewhere.

  17. 17.

    debbie

    @randy khan:

    Maybe screwing Dems like that was a factor, but there’s more to it. This could very well be the twilight of his leadership, and I think he knows that.

    Can the House also be forced to skip recess? I’d hate to think Ryan would have more time to do his evil shit with Social Security.

  18. 18.

    eemom

    And yet, there are certain assholes around here who take it upon themselves to scold good folks like Kay who have fought tooth and claw against the abominations now unfolding before our eyes for being debbie downers.

  20. 20.

    TenguPhule

    @eemom:

    And yet, there are certain assholes around here who take it upon themselves to scold good folks like Kay who have fought tooth and claw against the abominations now unfolding before our eyes for being debbie downers.

    We must clap harder or Tinkerbell will die.

  22. 22.

    Yutsano

    @debbie: The House won’t. Every House seat needs to be defended, even the safe ones. One disastrous town hall that close to midterms can actually change minds. Or one brilliant town hall can. Plus they need time to organize campaigns and such and not a lot of time to get things finished.

  25. 25.

    chris

    @TenguPhule:

    McConnell also plans to ram more Trump appointees down the throat of the Federal Courts.

    Heard on MSNBC today that one in eight judges (JFC!) are tRump appointees. Then they said that that is McConnell’s plan.

  26. 26.

    Brachiator

    McConnell also wants to ramp through judicial nominees. It’s election insurance.

  28. 28.

    TenguPhule

    @Brachiator:

    It’s election insurance.

    Whoever takes power in 2019 is basically going to have a precedent of “Do whatever the fuck we want”.

  29. 29.

    p.a.

    @TenguPhule:

    Whoever takes power in 2019 is basically going to have a precedent of “Do whatever the fuck we want”.

    thank dog the press will prevent the dems from doing this, under the IOKIYAR clause of the 1st Amendment.

  30. 30.

    Smedley Darlington Prunebanks (formerly Mumphrey, et Al.)

    Off the subject, but Alan Dershowitz says Tяump isn’t wrong to want loyalty from his attorney general; the Constitution is wrong for letting that kind of conflict happen. People always talk about this guy like he’s some kind of big liberal, but he seems to be a garden variety wingnut. Has something happened to change him, or has this reading of him always been horseshit?

  31. 31.

    Baud

    @p.a.:

    2019 won’t mean much in terms of affirmative policy because the GOP will still have the White House. But it’ll help stop the bleeding.

  32. 32.

    Brachiator

    @TenguPhule:

    Whoever takes power in 2019 is basically going to have a precedent of “Do whatever the fuck we want”.

    There’s push back. And Trump lacks the discipline to deliver what oligarchs want without making a mess.

    There was an earlier news story that talked about McConnell’s plans purely in terms of whether he could wrangle enough votes to do this or that. But the story ignored the fact that even GOP supporters are getting wise to the emptiness of Trump’s promises. I remember politicians lying to voters at Town Hall meetings on health care reform, or running away from their constituents altogether. And yet some pundits are pretending that this shit never happened or has no consequences.

    Real life don’t work that way.

  34. 34.

    SiubhanDuinne

    Heh. Kelly “John McCain is dying anyway” Sadler has been fired. Heh.

  36. 36.

    TenguPhule

    @Brachiator:

    But the story ignored the fact that even GOP supporters are getting wise to the emptiness of Trump’s promises. I remember politicians lying to voters at Town Hall meetings on health care reform, or running away from their constituents altogether. And yet some pundits are pretending that this shit never happened or has no consequences.

    Real life don’t work that way.

    Trump is polling better in the GOP then anyone other then Bush after 9/11. They know, they don’t fucking care.

  37. 37.

    TenguPhule

    @p.a.:

    thank dog the press will prevent the dems from doing this, under the IOKIYAR clause of the 1st Amendment.

    Sucker punching the media will be among the few things both parties can agree on.

  40. 40.

    oatler.

    Let us wait for a reasonble, measured response from Senator Feinstein, and also a new season of The Mary Tyler Moore Show.

  43. 43.

    ??? Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)  ??

    @eemom:
    Can we please not do this? See my comment on the Sportsball thread at 119

  44. 44.

    Jeffro

    @TenguPhule: TP’s right…the remaining Trumpov supporters are ‘all in’

    My only question is, are polls accounting for the likelihood that many Rs are no longer describing themselves that way – they’re now “independents “ or something?

  49. 49.

    Brachiator

    @TenguPhule:

    Trump is polling better in the GOP then anyone other then Bush after 9/11. They know, they don’t fucking care.

    Yeah, I saw that. A lot of people are in denial, or want to continue to give Trump the benefit of the doubt, but they are wavering. They see the absence of real health care reform. They see tax cuts going to stock buybacks instead of wages.

    And even though Fox News tries to keep the lies going, the truth keeps seeping through. Democrats need to keep taking advantage of this, chipping away at the lies.

    Also, remember that a chunk of people who voted for Trump are not GOP regulars. Trump is more vulnerable than the polling seems to indicate.

  54. 54.

    ??? Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)  ??

    @eemom:
    I’m legitimately sorry that I’ve come across as a jerk to you. When I next see Kay around these parts, I’ll apologize to her as well. Last night was partly due to me being pretty tired. When I get tired sometimes I get irritable. On top of that, the news lately was starting to freak me out. I shouldn’t have let Kay’s (or anyone else’s) words get to me. It isn’t an excuse bit an explanation. I’ll try to do better in the future.

  55. 55.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @?BillinGlendaleCA:

    they have new “I have voted” stickers.

    Yeah, they introduced new ones (bilingual, yet!) in Georgia a couple of weeks ago.

    (And please spare us the jokes about “bilingual English and Southern.” Thanks, y’all.)

  60. 60.

    Mnemosyne

    @?BillinGlendaleCA:

    They had some issues with the ballot verifyer thingy at my polling place this morning, but it looked like turning it off and turning it back on worked.

    The nice poll workers explained that it helps them catch accidental overvotes so they can send you back to re-do your ballot if you messed it up.

  61. 61.

    Ruckus

    @Jeffro:
    Tumbrels and pikes or high taxes? Tumbrels and pikes or high taxes?
    Let’s break this down.
    For now, to fix things, tumbrels and pikes.
    To keep it fixed and make it even better, raise taxes on the fucking uber rich.
    Por lo tanto.

  62. 62.

    Ruckus

    @Baud:

    What does this have to do with Bill Clinton?

    1. Does it need to have to do anything with him? NO. SATSQ
    2. So it must have something do to with Hillary Clinton. And again NO. SATAQ

    Remember the first requirement of propaganda, which republicans learned really well from their friends the Russians, the most believable bullshit is a proven lie, repeated and burnished until it takes on a sheen that no amount of truth will stick to.

  64. 64.

    sukabi

    @TenguPhule: that could be true…but how many are actually in the party? If there are 100 people in the party and 8 of them support the policies that’s 80%. Has anybody been tracking the ACTUAL NUMBER of republicans left in the party?

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