congress

Man pleads with Jeff Flake to vote down the tax plan and save his life

congress, News, politics

One of Sen. Jeff Flake (R-AZ)’s last major votes before retirement could be a death sentence for tens of thousands of Americans. One of them is Ady Barkan, a 33-year-old California father living with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), who, during a Thursday night flight from Washington D.C. to Phoenix, Arizona, asked Flake to cast a vote to save his life.

“I was healthy a year ago. I was running on the beach,” Barkan told Flake on the flight, according to video footage of the exch...

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Senate advances tax bill that benefits the rich and will cost $1.4 trillion dollars

congress, News, politics, Senate

The Senate voted 51 to 49 to pass its version of the GOP Tax Cuts and Jobs Act early Saturday morning. Many lawmakers only received the text of the massive bill, which has far-reaching implications across multiple sectors, just before the vote, leaving no time to read the almost-500 page piece of legislation.

Sen. Bob Corker (R-TN) was the only Republican to vote against the plan, and no Democrats voted for it.

The Senate version now has to be reconciled with the House versio...

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Here are the flimsy promises that got key Republican swing votes to support the tax plan

congress, John McCain, News, Senate, susan-collins

Several Republican senators who were considered swing votes on the GOP tax plan — a plan the chamber intends to vote on Friday night, without giving members sufficient time to even read the bill — have been swayed with flimsy promises by Republican leadership and the Trump administration.

“After securing significant changes, as well as commitments to pass legislation to help lower health insurance premiums, I will cast my vote in support of the Senate tax reform bi...

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Republicans tucked an irrelevant anti-abortion provision into the tax bill

congress, News, politics

The far-reaching implications of the Republican tax plan may include a sneaky attempt to use the sweeping piece of legislation to attack abortion rights.

Nearly 100 pages into the House version of the bill — and likely in the Senate bill as well, though Republicans have not yet released the text of the bill to the public, despite their intent to vote on it Friday afternoon — Republicans attempt to codify an anti-choice priority known as fetal personhood. The provision is...

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These are the lies John McCain is telling himself so he can support Trump’s tax cuts

congress, John McCain, News

Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) will vote for the Senate tax reform bill, he announced Thursday.

“After careful thought and consideration, I have decided to support the Senate tax reform bill,” McCain said in a statement Thursday morning. “I believe this legislation, though far from perfect, would enhance American competitiveness, boost the economy, and provide long overdue tax relief for middle class families.”

After careful consideration...

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Congress still hasn’t renewed CHIP funding, 9 million children could soon lose health coverage

congress, health, health care, News

It has been 51 days since Congress allowed the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) to expire. Since then, states have been grappling with the reality that nine million children may soon lose critical health care coverage.

While CHIP has historically received support from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, this year, Congress has allowed disagreements over the Affordable Care Act (ACA) to take precedence over reauthorizing funding for the program. Things are now especially...

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