As a second Trump administration approaches, we’re running out of time to confirm as many federal judges as possible to provide a check on his presidential power and curb his stated policy priorities.
Groundhog Day Means Yet Another Vote Against Health Care
It is Groundhog Day today and—guess what—the House is voting yet again to defund Planned Parenthood and to repeal the coverage expansions of the health care law.
The House has voted to unravel the health law’s Medicaid expansion, eliminate the subsidies for buying health coverage in the health insurance Marketplace, and defund Planned Parenthood a bunch of times. So the fact that they are taking another vote on both issues on Groundhog Day is…well, is just ironic.
You see, I feel like I am living in my own not-funny version of Groundhog Day. For those of you who haven’t seen the 1993 movie of the same name, it is a hilarious piece where Bill Murray frustratingly lives the same day—Groundhog Day—over and over again. Luckily for Bill’s character, it ends well with the love of his life (the awesome Andie MacDowell) and a new positive outlook on life. Unfortunately for those of us living on this side of reality, I’m not sure we are going to fare as well.
Thankfully, President Obama already vetoed the bill they are trying to override today and it looks like the override will fail. But, unfortunately, I don’t think some members of Congress are done yet with their dangerous and mean-spirited (and twisted Groundhog Day) efforts.
But it needs to stop. They need to stop trying to eliminate affordable health insurance for millions of low and moderate-income Americans and stop attacking a trusted health care provider that offers critical preventive care to millions of women and men.
Let’s stop this Groundhog Day thing before someone actually gets hurt.