The Obamacare repeal will show us now more than ever who is really fighting for the American people, and that’s bad for The President and many Republicans
It was only a month ago that many of us on the Left were cheering for joy when Paul Ryan and Donald Trump’s joke of a healthcare bill crashed and burned in a blaze of glory. Last week, unfortunately and tragically, Obamacare was voted to be repealed by the House, which means that over the next decade twenty-four million (and maybe millions more) Americans could be kicked off their healthcare plans. Kids born with medical conditions and diseases will not be covered, and anyone with a pre-existing condition will be discontinued from receiving the care they have been getting for the past few years from Obamacare. I always found myself repulsed by the actions of the Republican party in congress, but this is just plain disgusting. I said it once, and I’ll say it again: Republicans do nothing EVER but funnel money to rich people.
For the last seven years, Republicans in congress have been against Obamacare and anything President Obama accomplished. First, they warned that his healthcare plan would bankrupt the country — it didn’t. Then they warned that old people will lose their coverage — they didn’t. Then they said that your taxes will go up so badly that homelessness will rise — it didn’t. You know what happened? Over twenty million people who were stranded by their own country became covered and received the life-saving treatment they, or their family members so desperately needed. These Republican congressmen and women, led by Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell, (in my opinion, are the two most corrupt, un-American, and un-patriotic people in the country), have proven, once again, that they don’t work for us, the American people.
They have shown us countless times that they don’t care about you, your family, your education, your children, your health, your job, your house, your life; they don’t even care about the voters who put them into power; all they care about is making themselves richer, and doing it by taking endless bribes from millionaires and billionaires who tell these members of congress what bills to pass to give themselves more tax breaks. These are people so rich that even if you took some of their money away they wouldn’t even know it was missing. Republicans like Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell have been trying for years to find something in this country to gut to funnel more money to the super rich, (who are the real people they work for), and they decided to go after kids, elderly folks, and sick people by ripping away their healthcare to put billions into the top 1%’s pockets.
The great irony that makes me and many fellow Liberal-Democrats sick is that just before they voted to repeal Obamacare, a bill was quickly passed that protected congress’ own healthcare. In other words, they get to have Obamacare, but you can’t.
Ryan, McConnell, and Trump also said that people with pre-existing conditions won’t be kicked off their coverage, and we found out that was a flat-out lie. The list of pre-existing conditions that this bill would negatively affect looks like a college essay more than a short list. What leaves me heartbroken is seeing all my own friends on social media crying and posting how terrified they are because they will no longer get the life-saving medications and care they need for HIV, Hep C, Epilepsy, Aids, different types of cancer, and so many more conditions. As someone who used to have Epilepsy myself, this strikes a nerve in my heart and makes me feel both angry and heartbroken.
Since Trump took power and promised to repeal Obamacare back in January, Americans, both Democrat and Republican, have shown up by the thousands to town halls to send a clear message to their senators — Do NOT take away our health care! You work for US! You are supposed to do what WE say, not the rich who bribe you! And some, as I mentioned before, took the microphone, looked directly in their senator’s eyes, and said point-blank, “If you do this, I will die. Literally…I WILL DIE!” Sadly, even that was not enough to stop these corrupt men and women from voting down our health care, which just shows you how cold these people truly are. After the vote took place to repeal Americans’ healthcare, Nancy Pelosi gave a speech about how shameful this is, and warned Republicans who voted for this, that this will leave a scar on you, this is going to haunt you, your party, and your reputation forever and ever. Many Democrats in the House even chanted “Na na na na, na na na na, hey hey hey, goodbye!” to the Republicans who voted for this, letting them know that they have made their own beds when the time comes around to re-elect them.
There are some Republicans, like Rand Paul and John Kasich, who have spoken out against this bill, warning it will hurt far more Americans than it will help, and will cause a backlash in the country. It gives me a little strand of hope that there are some Republicans in power who will do the right thing even if it goes against your team’s wishes. Last week, Sen. Lindsey Graham once again spoke out against Trump and demanded our president release his tax returns, claiming if the Orange One has nothing to hide, and is, in fact, a real billionaire, he will want to show his taxes to clear his name. This country needs more moderate Republicans in congress like this, and more sane Republicans speaking out on television like Ana Navarro, S.E. Cupp, Tara Setmeyer, and even Shepard Smith, who have all been very vocal about Trump’s lies and hypocrisies, and still fight for what is right and call out their own party on their BS from time to time. If the Republican party were more like them in general, I think this would be a better country. It’s great to disagree, and to discuss and debate ideas and policies, that’s the best thing about this country is our freedom to disagree and talk like adults and find common ground, but what happened last Thursday is just plain wrong. We, the American voters, should examine these kinds of votes and hearings closely, and take note as to who is really looking out for us, including some good Republicans like Rand Paul, Lindsey Graham and John Kasich, and vote accordingly when election time comes around.
The President of the AARP released a statement and commercial to their members about this health care vote, shaming both the President and the Republicans who voted for this repeal. The AARP, which includes over thirty million Americans, the clear majority voting for Trump over Hillary in this past election, are speaking out to their voters to dump Trump now that he lied on his campaign promises (shocker!) to them about how their healthcare will get better, more medications will be readily available at cheaper prices, and more elderly folks will get the care they need. With this vote, the exact opposite is going to happen. There is one positive aspect here, and it is that even the most pro-Trump organizations and voters are coming around and seeing this man-baby for the lying con-artist he always was. This is just my opinion, but I think there’s going to be a wave towards giving the conservative half of the country a chance to run things, and when voters see what a catastrophe that will be, there will be a wave back. Right now, we are in the time where the floodgates just broke, and we’re waiting for the water to clear up before we rebuild the dam. This wave has awakened the sleeping dragon known as the American people. More than ever people are marching, protesting, and fighting for their rights, and whether Orange Hitler wants to hear us or not, he will take notice!
One last point I want to bring up, and this doesn’t have to do with the healthcare bill, is just bringing a spotlight to the difference between our current and past President. The contrast between these two Presidents is literally unbelievable.
Years ago, when Obama passed The Affordable Care Act, he held no parties or conventions, he simply sat in his office and reflected, knowing he did a great thing for his American people, even the ones who voted against him. Obama never tweeted, never showed a clip of himself holding up an executive order like a Price is Right model, never bragged about saving or creating jobs, he never tried to take credit for low gas prices or the soaring stock market and records being broken. He took criticism with such class and dignity, ignored the childish name-calling and ridicule from the right, listened to both sides, and did everything he thought was best for ALL the people in this country. He got us out of a depression, positioned the economy and stock market to surge, and left us with 4% unemployment.
As a point of contrast: After the repeal passed, Trump hosted a party in the garden of the White House, celebrating with hundreds of Republicans that money will be saved by kicking Americans off their insurance. If Donald Trump so much as ties his own shoes correctly he brags and tweets about it for days. Trump was raised during the self-esteem movement, where children were told they were special, no one is more important than you, and being a narcissist isn’t a bad thing. This is a man whose parents handed him everything, he can’t take a single ounce of criticism, stays up all night tweeting, having an uncontrollable need to get back at everyone and anyone who ever speaks out against him; accuses the journalists and media outlets who point out his BS and corruption as being fake news, and wants to change the first amendment to no longer protect freedom of the press. He assembles the most blatantly corrupt and greedy cabinet of super unqualified people in the highest positions of power, signs orders to dismantle different groups rights and freedoms, panders to other brutal dictators about how great they are and the fine job they do ruling over their own countries. He fires the head of the FBI, James Comey, who was investigating his ties to Russia, and warns Comey that if he releases any tapes of Trump’s corruption that there will be hell to pay; lies about everything, gets caught, then sends out surrogates to lie about those lies. This is exactly how a dictatorship begins. All the signs are in front of us.
Could you even imagine what Fox News and the Right would be saying is this was Hillary or Obama? But it’s not a Democrat, or a woman, or a black man. It’s a rich, white Republican, so the Right will just ignore it and look the other way. Nothing to see here!
To anyone who still supports the despicable actions of the Republican party after last Thursday, good luck to you. Democrats need to stop playing so nice and bringing a knife to a gun fight. Republicans in congress don’t play fair, they vote to change and break rules all the time, and they get their way by cheating every chance they get, and we need to open our eyes to that.
But hey, at least we didn’t elect an overqualified woman who uses a private email server, right?
About the Author:
Brian Moniz is a 28-year-old man from San Jose, Calif. He studied filmmaking and writing at San Jose State University from 2010–2013 and got his bachelor’s degree in Radio-TV-Film. Throughout his high school and college years, he worked as a music and movie journalist and critic. Having only recently come out of the closet himself in 2014, Brian enjoys writing about LGBTQ issues. His only regret when it comes to his sexuality is that he didn’t come out sooner. Read more by Brian here.
