“All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.” – The Pigs.  (George Orwell, Animal Farm, 1945.)

Actually the pigs have been around for a while but yesterday, punch drunk on power, they passed out the GOP replacement bill for Obamacare, aka the Affordable Care Act, the ACA.   Then they hopped on some buses, drank some beer, and drove off the edge of a cliff around the White House Rose Garden like the lemmings pigs fearless feckless leaders that they are.

And upon closer inspection, we’re hearing news that this bill does not replace ACA benefits.   Oh?  What’s this?  The House GOP after successfully passing a repeal of the ACA after 7 years of trying, have lobbed a polished turd healthcare bill over to the Senate.  Now Senators are scrambling to write their own replacement bill!

The House GOP Playbook:

  1. Pass a piece of token legislation.
  2. Send it to the Senate.
  3. Hope the Senate rejects your bill and saves you from your electorate.
  4. Have some beers. Take a bus ride. Repeat.

And I wonder what they believe governance is actually for?  If I were new to the US, I would guess in order of importance, that House Representatives:

  1.  Get elected and get re-elected at any cost.  And by ‘at any cost’, we mean Citizens United.  And by ‘Citizens United’, we actually mean not a person as a citizen, but a corporation as a citizen; and united as in a one-sided, unilateral point-of-view.
  2. Worship at the feet of the Golden Calf of Capitalism.
  3. Anything they can get away with and still get re-elected. (Point #1)

It does not appear that lurching toward a saner, kinder, more perfect union is in their best interest.  The GOP is sick, in need of political medicine and some oral hygiene.  They have lost their way even as I am quite happy to see them drive their bus over the ledge. More equal pigs be gone and take your old ideas with you!

For reference:

NPR reporting on the passage, announcement, and victory lap in buses around the White House Rose Garden. Wha’?! For serious reals?!

(Why I hope the above link to NPR source is still here in a year …)

LA Times side-by-side comparison of May 4, 2017 AHCA plan and the existing ACA.

2017.05.06 – Update:  I removed my comparison of the two political parties as a mom- and pop-shop.   Although it was a reflection of and from when I was younger, over the years family structure, relationships, organizations have changed and I would like to explore the respective “personalities” of the political parties with a bit more thoughtful consideration.

And the mom-and-pop shop comparison is woefully dated.  It makes me feel old.  <smile>