Fighting Back: “Raise your voices, engage with your congressmembers, and spread the word about this bill”

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Found on the Internets …

Democratic Weekly Address — Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer, Congressman from Maryland:

Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer Delivers Weekly Democratic Address

[This past week] we saw the Republican-led Congress at its worst, and deeply out of touch with the people it serves. On Thursday, Republican leaders decided, against strong objections from across the country, to bring their dangerous and deeply flawed Trumpcare bill to the Floor for a vote – and this time, President Trump and Republican leaders went all out to scrape together just enough Republican votes to pass it by a razor-thin margin.[…]

“The bill now moves to the Senate, where it will face very strong opposition. It’s critical that all Americans who are concerned about Trumpcare make their voices heard and let their Senators know how harmful this bill would be to them and to their families.

“House Democrats will continue to highlight the dangers of Trumpcare, and we will keep fighting on behalf of the American people to preserve and strengthen health care reforms that make quality, affordable health coverage accessible to all.

“I hope all of you will raise your voices, engage with your Senators and Representatives, and spread the word about this bill that will hurt millions of Americans.

(CSPAN link to Weekly Democratic Address: here)

(Link to Nancy Pelosi Newsroom here)

Transcript: Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer Delivers Weekly Democratic Address

“Hello, I’m Congressman Steny Hoyer, from the state of Maryland. This week, the American people were presented with two strikingly different visions of their Congress.

“On Wednesday, in an example of bipartisanship and compromise, Democrats and Republicans came together to avert a government shutdown and pass a funding bill that both sides could – and did – support.

“Democrats worked hard to ensure that the bill we passed included funding for health benefits for coal miners; medical research at the National Institutes of Health; Pell grants for students; disaster relief; famine aid; the fight against America’s opioid epidemic; and to strengthen our national security. Moreover, we made sure that taxpayer funding for President Trump’s border wall, which he promised Mexico would pay for, was not part of the bill.

“But just a day later, we saw the Republican-led Congress at its worst, and deeply out of touch with the people it serves. On Thursday, Republican leaders decided, against strong objections from across the country, to bring their dangerous and deeply flawed Trumpcare bill to the Floor for a vote – and this time, President Trump and Republican leaders went all out to scrape together just enough Republican votes to pass it by a razor-thin margin.

“Republicans voted for this bill even though it broke President Trump’s promise of, and I quote, ‘insurance for everybody’ that is ‘far less expensive and far better’ than what people have now. That was his promise. That is not what this bill did.

“Democrats were unanimous in voting to reject Trumpcare because we know exactly the harm it will do to health care in our country. It will kick 24 million Americans off their insurance coverage, including 7 million who are covered through their employers. It will force Americans to pay more for less, with premiums projected to rise 24 to 29 percent over each of the next two years if the bill is enacted.

“It will make coverage unaffordable for the one in four Americans who have pre-existing conditions. If you have asthma, have survived cancer, were born with a heart condition, or are a woman – these are all considered pre-existing conditions for which insurance companies would be able to charge substantially higher premiums under Republicans’ Trumpcare plan.

“It will impose an age tax on older Americans. It will put the Medicare Trust Fund at risk, reducing its long-term solvency by three years. And, it will enable states to kick 14 million Americans off Medicaid. And it will make prescription drugs more expensive for seniors.

“Republicans have been trying to repeal the Affordable Care Act since its adoption in 2010. They have done everything to undermine its successful implementation, and they have opposed making any improvements in the original bill. But a majority of the American people, under the polls, do not want to see the Affordable Care Act repealed.

“The bill now moves to the Senate, where it will face very strong opposition. It’s critical that all Americans who are concerned about Trumpcare make their voices heard and let their Senators know how harmful this bill would be to them and to their families.

“House Democrats will continue to highlight the dangers of Trumpcare, and we will keep fighting on behalf of the American people to preserve and strengthen health care reforms that make quality, affordable health coverage accessible to all.

“I hope all of you will raise your voices, engage with your Senators and Representatives, and spread the word about this bill that will hurt millions of Americans.

“Thank you for listening, and God bless our great nation.”

Any bolding has been added.

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Leader Nancy Pelosi’s weekly news conference on Thursday:

Transcript: Transcript of Pelosi Press Conference

Leader Pelosi. Good morning. Good morning. Busy day.

This morning we started off in the Triangle with Democratic Members of the House and of the Senate to welcome Team 26. I’m so honored they gave me a shirt. Team 26 is in honor of the 20 children and 6 teachers who were killed at Sandy Hook School.

Every year this bicycle ride starts in this area, in the Washington area, and bikes up to Newtown. It’s a constant reminder and inspiration. The question that people asked at the time, “Well, if they’re going to kill 20 little children in first grade, that must have a reaction in Congress.” Of course, it did not. Twenty children, six of their brave teachers and supervisors.

So, again, we’ll never forget. We’ll never stop our work on this subject. And even today, a day where the focus is on Republican attempts to take health care away, we will keep the focus on just give us a vote. We think that there is bipartisan support for background checks in the Congress. We have bipartisan support that we know of. We just want them to give us a vote.

I keep reminding my colleagues, if this is about their political survival, their political survival means nothing compared to the survival of 20 children in first grade in Newtown and their teachers.

Today, as you know, with only hours’ notice and no CBO score, Republicans are maliciously, again, attempting to destroy health care and coverage for the American people. This is really almost, I would say, a welcome debate. I would hope that they realize that this is really bad for the country. But I do say that it is good in one respect: It’s going to provide a great civics lesson for America.

Let’s face it, as important as we think we are when we’re in Congress, most people don’t even know who their Congressperson is in many places. And now they’ll find out. They will find out that their Congressperson voted to take away their health care. They will find out that their Congressperson forced families to pay higher premiums and deductibles, increasing out‑of‑pocket cost.

They will find out that their Congressperson said it’s okay to take health care away from 24 million people, and this could mean you. They will find out that their Congressperson voted to gut key protections. Trumpcare destroys protections for preexisting conditions, yes, it does. But not only that, it guts essential health benefits such as maternity care, prenatal prescription drug and emergency coverage. The list goes on and on.

And they will find out that, if they’re between 50 and 64, that their Congressperson voted to make them pay a premium five times higher than others pay for health coverage no matter how healthy they are. And they will find out that in addition to that crushing age tax, that it steals from Medicare. You know most Americans will say, “Don’t mess with my Medicare”? They’re messing with the Medicare.

So that’s what they are doing today. And all of this for what purpose? All of this to give a $600 billion transfer of money from working families to the richest corporations and people in our country. That’s why they’re timing it this way, in time to get that money to give a tax cut.

It’s really stunning. And that’s why I’m so pleased that so many organizations have made their voices heard on this.

I just want to spend half a moment really on this bill. The first bill, 56 to 17, the American people disapproved of it. So they couldn’t pass it.

So what did they do? Make matters worse. They went further to the left. So while they eventually got a CBO report on their first bill, when a CBO report comes out on this, it’s going to be even worse because the bill goes in the wrong direction.

And in terms of the fraudulent representation that they’re making that this is about preexisting conditions, it’s so untrue. Let me just quote some people.

Now Republicans again are fraudulently claiming the Upton amendment covers Americans with preexisting conditions. It does not.

Robert Graboyes, a healthcare expert at the conservative Mercatus Center, conservative center, said, “The amendment at hand focuses on high‑risk pools, but the $8 billion amount is a pittance. Spread over 5 years, it’s a fifth of a pittance.” You have the President of the United States saying it’s more money that we need. He doesn’t even know what he’s talking about.

And then Karen Pollitz, a healthcare expert at the Kaiser Family Foundation, she said it would cover the cost for only 1 percent of those in the individual market. They’re big on 1 percent, whether it’s money for the 1 percent or health care for the 1 percent, where we’d like that to be 100 percent.

Under Trumpcare, Americans with preexisting conditions will be pushed off their insurance, segregated into high‑risk pools, and they will face soaring costs, worst coverage, and restricted care. It’s serious, and it’s very frightening.

This disastrous bill has been condemned by almost everyone. They have no support. And let me just read you a list of some. And I think you have, whether you have it there or electronically, but among the list: American Medical Association, American Cancer Society, American Diabetes Association, the American Heart Association, the American Lung Association, American Society of Clinical Oncology, the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, AIDS United, the Children’s Hospital Association, AARP, the March of Dimes. The list goes on and on and on.

But Trumpcare was never about strengthening the health care of the American people. It was all about a tax break for the wealthiest people in our country.

As I said, the CBO score for the original Trumpcare bill was devastating enough. Forcing a vote without an updated CBO score shows that the Republicans are terrified. They’re terrified of the facts of what that CBO report would say. They’re afraid of the truth of what it means to the American people.

And people are understanding what this means to them. And they are afraid that the American people will realize that they’re destroying health care just because they want to give a tax break to the high end, the biggest transfer of wealth, one of the biggest transfers of wealth in our history. Robin Hood in reverse, from the middle class and those who aspire to it to the wealthiest.

Republicans are in a lose‑lose situation. They’ll lose if they don’t bring it up and it doesn’t win. They really lose if they pass it because then you can clearly say this is not an intention, this is a decision that they have made and acted upon, voted upon. They’re deluding themselves into thinking that they can hide the truth or hide from their constituents when they take their vote.

So we welcome them to this great civics class. As you can see, since the election, there has been a heightened interest in what goes on in public policy and how it affects people in their personal lives. We look forward to having that debate.

Any questions?

Press questioning followed (see transcript)

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Transcript of Nancy Pelosi’s Floor Speech. Excerpts:

If Republicans thought they really were protecting people, they wouldn’t be afraid of the facts. But they’re also afraid of the truth and the truth that would come forth if we knew the facts. And they’re afraid that the American people will find out that this is not a health care bill. This is a tax bill disguised as a health bill. This is a bill that is the one of the biggest transfers of wealth in the history of the country, from the middle class to the richest people and corporations in America.

A tax bill, not a health care bill. That’s why they have to do it now. So they can get on with their tax bill. But the suffering Trumpcare will inflict on people is all too clear. That’s why this disastrous bill has been condemned by the American Medical Association, the American Cancer Society, American Diabetes Society, American Diabetes Association, American Heart Association, American Lung Association, American Society of Clinical Oncology, the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, Age United, the Children’s Hospital Association, AARP, the March Of Dimes, the list goes on and on.

Mr. Speaker, we have with this bill a wonderful opportunity. This is one of the best civics lessons we can engage in. Because of what happened following the election, the American people are engaged. They are paying attention. I’m not saying in a political way. I’m saying in a personal way. A former Speaker said, all politics is local. In the case of health care, all politics is personal. All politics is personal when it comes to health care. So, this civics lesson will teach the American people a number of things.

As special as we think we are when we come to the floor here, most Americans don’t know who their Member of Congress is. But they will now. When they find out that you voted to take away their health care. They will know when you put an Age Tax on them or undermine Medicare, Medicaid and the rest. Oh, yeah. They’re paying attention. Because it’s really personal with them. And their families.

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