1. Bracket racket
Donald Trump is charging hard to sell tax cuts he says are aimed at “everyday hardworking Americans”. Unsurprisingly, analysis shows those most likely to gain are wealthy folks like Trump himself and most of his cabinet. The bottom third of earners would see little to no relief or benefit.
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Deficit spending is cool now
The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget estimates the Trump plan will add between $3tn and $7tn to the $20tn national debt over the next decade. To offset that, the Trump administration has proposed $5tn in cuts to non-military spending, meaning things like schools, Medicaid, social security and disability insurance.
Holy deflection, Batman!
asked whether Trump falsely claimed that his tax plan wouldn't benefit him, Cohn says American workers only care if their own taxes go down
— John Harwood (@JohnJHarwood) September 28, 2017
Don't sugar coat it, Orrin
Senator @OrrinHatch on taxes:
— Sahil Kapur (@sahilkapur) September 28, 2017
"I want it to be the right kind of bill. Not some piece of crap, which we're so used to around here."
2. Standing for Steve
Representative Steve Scalise made his long awaited return to Capitol Hill Thursday, to raucous applause and a standing ovation. The congressman from Louisiana was shot and seriously wounded by a gunman in June on a DC ballfield.
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3. Price(d) out?
Trump has said he is “not happy” with the health and human services secretary, Tom Price, following reports that Price used a private plane for official business. Asked whether he was planning on firing Price, Trump responded: “We’ll see.”
White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders was also noncommittal on Price’s job security today.
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Check please
In a statement Thursday, Price said he would “write a personal check to the US Treasury today for the expenses of my travel on private charter planes”, and that it would never happen again, “no exceptions”.
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4. Keeping up with the Jones Act
The White House on Thursday waived the law which requires goods sent between US ports to be carried on ships built, owned and operated by the US. The 1920 Jones Act was preventing foreign ships from delivering supplies to Puerto Rico, more than a week after Hurricane Maria devastated the US territory.
5. Alternative facts
Trump repeatedly told Fox and Friends that his party had the votes to pass a repeal of Obamacare, if not for the hospitalization of a senator. The claim was false on both counts. The Senate minority leader, Mitch McConnell, pulled the bill after three GOP senators voiced opposition and Senator Thad Cochran, who is dealing with a minor health concern, has confirmed he’s at home.
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Ummm... actually, Mr President...
Thanks for the well-wishes. I'm not hospitalized, but am recuperating at home in Mississippi and look forward to returning to work soon.
— Senator Thad Cochran (@SenThadCochran) September 27, 2017
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6. Obamacare out of ICU (for now)
With the Graham-Cassidy healthcare bill officially shelved by GOP congressional leaders, Obamacare is once again safe from repeal attempts, at least for the moment. How safe? Safe enough that a bipartisan plan to stabilize ACA marketplaces is already in the works.
That escalated quickly ...
NEW: Senate Health Chair Lamar Alexander says a bipartisan deal to stabilize Obamacare’s insurance exchanges could come as early as tonight
— Laura Litvan (@LauraLitvan) September 28, 2017
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... And then there's 42, 43, and 44
Presidents Obama, Bush and Clinton attend the Presidents Cup at Liberty National Golf Club. pic.twitter.com/KzS3Td5mFu
— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) September 28, 2017
... Lastly, this
"A Big Luther official" is now my favorite attribution tag https://t.co/5x72gwChFt
— Shane Goldmacher (@ShaneGoldmacher) September 28, 2017
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