Trump's America, March 2017: Using His Inside VOICE

Of course they could close ranks! But I still think that when you have the head of the appropriations committee saying 'yeah, no' without apparent fear of any repercussions, that's a tell.

We need a countdown-to-the-vote clock.

Post still showing 33 committed "no" votes plus a dozen or so "leaning no" votes. idk how much arm-twisting Ryan can really pull off here.

xpost -- Six hours out, I think.

Anyway, one of three things will happen:

* Vote as announced, whatever the result
* Bill is pulled
* Vote postponed to next week

Personally I could see any one of these happening, though the first is pretty much the most likely result.

Alcee Hastings!

What a fun meeting this will be!

https://twitter.com/JenniferJJacobs/status/845308098768240640

BREAKING: Paul Ryan is coming to White House to brief the president on latest health care bill, I'm told.

6 hours?! I thought they said "Friday morning"

Nancy Pelosi‏Verified account @NancyPelosi 40m40 minutes ago

Every single Republican who votes for #TrumpCare will have this moral monstrosity tattooed to their foreheads forever. Every. Single. One.

xpost Hm, got my time zones confused a bit -- probably more like three hours.

Building on that tweet I shared:

https://twitter.com/JakeSherman/status/845308269472219136

This is a big development. the whip count is not looking good, per several ppl involved

That's probably a vast understatement.

xpost -- Moral Montrosity will be playing at the Elbo Room in a couple of weeks, I'm sure.

https://twitter.com/TimAlberta/status/845311572264275969

Source just now: They might pull the bill altogether.

They're getting farther from, not closer to, 215.

Oh the roffles

Every single Republican who votes for #TrumpCare will have this moral monstrosity tattooed to their foreheads forever. Every. Single. One.

lol shoulda gone w "carved" imo

Sam Stein‏Verified account @samsteinhp 16h16 hours ago

We don’t have legislative language for you

We don’t have a CBO score for you

This thing polls at 17%

The Senate won’t pass it

Vote yes

"maybe we should vote now so we don't lose anybody else"

Earlier today, GOP House Intel chair Rep. Devin Nunes went around members (again) and arbitrarily announced that the March 28 open hearing was canceled.

A House Intel source says this move was a "suicide bomb" designed to destroy the Russia investigation.

Democrats on the Intel committee are meeting now to discuss how to handle the situation.

Really, pulling the bill is the only fig leaf that theoretically covers everybody. It allows for a cruddy "This really needs more time, we understand voters would like to know more," etc etc language that will be laughed at, but nobody has to make a specific statement via a vote either way. Obviously it makes Ryan and Trump both look weak and ridiculous but they'll punt away happily, while McConnell's probably thinking "Well thank god."

yeah but freedom

Who knew!

So as this tweet sums it up:

https://twitter.com/ShaneGoldmacher/status/845310482181435392

A possibility: What if Ryan tells Trump he needs to pull the bill, and Trump tells him he wants the floor vote?

re: Nunes, is it actually believed that the news about there being possible circumstantial evidence of collusion came from the FBI in response to Nunes' bitch move? Cos if so, won't they keep doing things like that if Nunes keeps obviously obstructing?

Trump's gonna drive into the House honking the horn

at this point for my mental health i'm assuming that it passes today, i don't think i can feel optimistic about anything political these days

Hahah oh man

https://twitter.com/MajorCBS/status/845310870607548418

Mulvaney to @SpeakerRyan when informed he didn't have votes for #Obamacarerepeal -- "The president doesn't care. The president wants a vote"

don't worry, the heritage foundation's josh lyman reincarnated is here to shepherd this thing over the line https://twitter.com/burgessev/status/845310830489063424

A possibility: What if Ryan tells Trump he needs to pull the bill, and Trump tells him he wants the floor vote?

isn't this what happened yesterday?

Postpone vs. pull.

he wants it one way but it's the other way, again

"by Executive Order, Affordable Care Act is now rebranded Trumpcare. You're welcome"

I mean he might as well.

Obviously it makes Ryan and Trump both look weak and ridiculous

Well, to US. But we were already there. Trumpoids have already decided to spin this as yet another tale of his awesome strength and wisdom, betrayed at the last minute by establishment weaklings and cowards. His only error was trusting that these professionals knew what they were doing. Ah, well, another example of career politicians being unable to live up to the example of His Donaldness.

Or, what Lord Alfred said.

Trump's approval at -12 this morning. on Rasmussen

strongly approve down to 29%

Trump's presidency is basically a limbo contest at this point

Well, to US. But we were already there. Trumpoids have already decided to spin this as yet another tale of his awesome strength and wisdom, betrayed at the last minute by establishment weaklings and cowards. His only error was trusting that these professionals knew what they were doing. Ah, well, another example of career politicians being unable to live up to the example of His Donaldness.

Or, what Lord Alfred said.

Certainly, and we can't handwave that. And yet: W was down to a 27% that still approved of him at the end of his second term, but that didn't budge. Point is, though, that it was 27% -- Trump's equivalent may be louder, but, as Neanderthal just noted, seems like he hits the same numbers when crunch time arrives.

How are his Russian numbers?

Trumpoids have already decided to spin this as yet another tale of his awesome strength and wisdom, betrayed at the last minute by establishment weaklings and cowards. His only error was trusting that these professionals knew what they were doing. Ah, well, another example of career politicians being unable to live up to the example of His Donaldness.

This is because, as the fence-sitting moderate 'hold yr nose and vote' supporters drift away from the increasingly-obvious insanity, all that's left is the Cult of Trump, who venerate everything that the Great Leader says and does.

xpost -- Bigly.

This is all Trump trying to figure out who's willing to follow him off a cliff, isn't it

Everyone's fave oppo drop guy Rick Wilson had a tweetstorm just now that, some language aside, probably sums things up:

https://twitter.com/TheRickWilson/status/845313114618957824

A key bit:

House Republicans who privately loathe him (and there are a LOT) play the DC game of "My good friend Donald!" and know how to fluff him....They're exhausted and nervous after only a few weeks, and the sense we're moving from FOMT to FHMT is growing. (FOMT: Fear of Mean Tweets/FHMT: Fuck His Mean Tweets)

Which is inline with the Freedom Caucus's reported response to Trump's troll this morning. If they're shrugging and laughing it off, then all of a sudden his supposed powerful vaunted leverage via Twitter is so much gas.

all that's left is the Cult of Trump, who venerate everything that the Great Leader says and does

one of the top posts at the_d is this

http://i.imgur.com/aTWGjem.jpg

we're all clowning him for this and they fucking love it

You know what's Hilarious Thing #2353? Joe Scarborough and co. lamented Trump's decision to hit health care first when he could've gone for something "easy" like "tax reform" yet Scar doesn't acknowledge that Trumpcare is tax reform for the rich.

Fun fun:

https://twitter.com/mj_lee/status/845315058414563328

Wow. @DanaBashCNN reporting Ryan is going to show Trump the votes and tell him they don't have them. He'll ask what Trump wants to do now

First tweet in response:

https://twitter.com/BrianAbrams/status/845315715670396929

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/C7sqKMIXwAQXFS1.jpg

This is all Trump trying to figure out who's willing to follow him off a cliff, isn't it

once he identifies the truly-loyal, the purges can begin

xpost I'm sure Trump will argue that the smaller number of votes is actually the larger one

And meanwhile:

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2017/03/24/bannon-tells-trump-keep-a-shit-list-of-republicans-who-opposed-you.html

“(Bannon) has told the president to keep a shit list on this,” one official told The Daily Beast. "He wants a running tally of (the Republicans) who want to sink this…Not sure if I'd call it an 'enemies list,' per se, but I wouldn't want to be on it."

One aide described it as a proposed “hit list” for Republicans not sufficiently loyal. Courses of action stemming from any related tally is yet to be determined, but the idea and message is that “we’ll remember you.”...

Sources also said that others including Mick Mulvaney, Trump's director of the Office of Management and Budget and co-founder of the House Freedom Caucus, endorsed the idea of the running list, and that Trump agreed with the idea.

(Which sounds more like, again, posturing than anything else.)

I approve of them all stabbing each other in the back, this is really best-case scenario for the GOP from my POV

Also surfacing:

https://twitter.com/kelsey_snell/status/845307241968386048

CBO told Senate they can't vote on repeal w/out a score, that could take a week or more. That would push a vote to may, after Easter recess.

Whoops!

It totally hamstrings Ryan in the House - if they have all out internecine warfare, he won't be able to pass anything w out going to the Dems for votes.

xp