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Top Stories
Republicans Have An Obamacare ‘Replacement’ Problem
The Gist: Their slogan is “repeal and replace,” but as Republicans debate their vision for an Obamacare alternative, they are beginning to see that options are limited, the politics are fraught and the clock is already ticking into President Donald Trump’s first 100 days.
Senate GOPers Vote To Rebuke Warren Over Speech Slamming Sessions
The Gist: Senate Republicans on Tuesday night voted to silence Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) as she criticized attorney general nominee Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL) on the Senate floor and quoted a letter written by Coretta Scott King thirty years ago about Sessions.
Trump Told Chaffetz Not To Talk Oversight In Oval Office Meeting
The Gist: President Donald Trump met with Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-UT), the chair of the House Oversight Committee, on Tuesday at the White House, but the two did not discuss oversight at the request of the President.
From The Reporter’s Notebook
GOP lawmakers convened on Capitol Hill Tuesday to discuss physical threats to their safety posed by constituents turning up in force to their public appearances to voice concerns over ACA repeal and President Trump’s agenda. The voters who spoke to TPM’s Allegra Kirkland said that recent events they attended in Illinois and California were entirely peaceful. “People were there with signs but they were singing ‘This Land Is Your Land,’ chanting ‘No hate, no fear, immigrants are welcome here.’ It was not a dangerous situation at all,” Kim Mattoch, a Republican mother from the Sacramento area told Kirkland of her experience at a town hall held by Rep. Tom McClintock (R-CA) last weekend.
Agree or Disagree?
Josh Marshall: “Trump is primarily driven by impulse, grievance, the need to dominate and the need to be praised. There are core political beliefs Trump has had for decades which we should expect him to stick to. They almost all turn on being taken advantage of by other countries – whether in terms of trade or defense. The common thread is a deep belief in zero-sum relationships, whether in business or foreign affairs. As business columnist Joe Nocera put it after decades of observing Trump: ‘In every deal, he has to win and you have to lose.’ But if Trump’s ideology is fluid, he has drawn around him advisors who can only be termed extremists. I believe the chief reason is that Trump’s authoritarian personality resonates with extremist politics and vice versa. We should expect them to keep catalyzing each other in dangerous and frightening ways. “
Say What?!
“Again, death and murder on both sides is wrong, but if you want to take the dozens of scenarios where ISIS-inspired attacks have taken innocents, and you give one example of what was in Canada, I’m going to condemn them all. But again, you don’t have a group like ISIS or Al Qaeda that’s inspiring people around the world to take up arms and kill innocents. That was a one-off, that was a one-off, Alisyn. And you have a movement on the other side.”
– One Republican congressman differentiated between white terrorists and “radical Islamic terrorists” on Tuesday, saying “there’s a difference” between attacks by the groups.
BUZZING: Today in the Hive
From a TPM Prime member: “The trouble with Democrats is they are always playing it safe. They need to take a lesson from Trump: playing it safe is not always the best strategy. The sad thing is, Democrats do have something good to sell. They are just afraid to do it. Things or policies to consider: The United States is 12 times richer than it was in 1930. It was poorer than Mexico is today. The Republicans want to take us back to those times. They want to make America poor again. America is a wealthy county. There is absolutely no reason why anyone should ,go without. No one needs to go to bed hungry. No one needs to be homeless. No one needs to be deprived of clothing or the necessities of life. There is enough to go around. There was a time when Republicans wanted to make America great. They freed the slaves. They built the transcontinental railroad. The gave us land grant colleges which offered an education for everyone. They passed the homestead act so everyone could have their own plot of land. But today, the Republicans see the government as the enemy. They want nothing for the American people and everything for the wealthy few. A well educated society is essential for Democracy to thrive. Every child is entitled to a quality education. A solid education makes us all stronger. This type of rhetoric could go on and on. Why are Democrats so afraid of it?”
Related: READ: The Letter From Coretta Scott King That Got Elizabeth Warren Rebuked
Have something to add? Become a Prime member and join the discussion here.
What We’re Reading
Can Megyn Kelly Escape Her Past? (The Atlantic)
100 More Jokes That Shaped Modern Comedy (Vulture)
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