The House GOP passed their debt ceiling ransom note, but it's headed nowhere.

Wednesday, April 26, 2023
BY JULIA CLAIRE & CROOKED MEDIA

- CNN Anchor Erin Burnett ([link removed]) accurately describing the Kremlin’s reaction to the loss of their ace in the hole

The House GOP has passed its national ransom note called the “Limit, Save, Grow Act of 2023” and folks, it’s as bad as we thought it would be.

* Ever the absolutely inept leader, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy announced to reporters on Tuesday GOP plans to pass his heinous bill in an effort to force Dems to the bargaining table, even though the bill is virtually dead on arrival in the Senate, and President Biden has made clear he won’t have a hostage negotiation with Republicans threatening to plunge the country into default on the national debt. The bill would lift the debt limit by $1.5 trillion but would slash funding for federal agencies ([link removed]) , limit growth in government spending to a scant one percent, and cancel various White House initiatives like student-debt cancellation and adequate funding for the IRS. You’re saying a bunch of people who love to cheat on their taxes want to take an ax to IRS funding? Well now I’ve seen it all.

* The proposed debt-limit increase would also only last through March 2024, which is yet another reason Biden will reject this ransom demand out of hand: Republicans would just come back and do this again in less than a year! Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said that even if this bill passes the House, it has no chance in the upper chamber because Democratic lawmakers have (rightly) insisted that the debt-limit should be raised without preconditions ([link removed]) . It’s just paying what we already owe.

* House Republicans concluded earlier this year that Medicare and Social Security are too popular and deeply entrenched to propose cutting without suffering huge political consequences, but they’ve also ruled out cutting defense spending ([link removed]) , which would be the most obvious category to scale back. That means absolutely obliterating programs that help the most financially strapped Americans. First on the GOP chopping block is Medicaid, which Republicans want to slash by adding work requirements and additional red tape, which would effectively kick over two-million people off of the health-care program, according to Congressional Budget Office estimates ([link removed]) .

Sounds bad, huh!

* Well, the House GOP passed it all anyhow. And even though it has basically no chance of becoming law, it demonstrates a number of things we already know to be true about Republicans. First, that Kevin McCarthy is a complete clown:even though the bill’s passage is being touted as a “victory” for McCarthy, he barely got enough votes in his own party to get it out of the lower chamber, and now that it’s passed, it’ll be fodder for Democratic campaign attack ads. Second, it illustrates the true hollowness of the GOP’s “populist” charade. Republicans have the dubious distinction of being the only major political party in the industrialized world that opposes access to basic health care as a human right. Cool party!

* McCarthy made some last-minute concessions to win over his colleagues in corn-producing states of the country like Iowa ([link removed]) , who did not want to see McCarthy repeal ethanol tax credits, including those in the Inflation Reduction Act. So the Corn Republicans are happy, and poor people get kicked off their health care. Another piece of perfect GOP legislation.

So where does this bill go from here? To hell, hopefully. President Biden said he will not negotiate with debt ceiling terrorists, but is “happy to meet” with McCarthy to talk about other issues. White House Communications Director Ben LaBolt excoriated the bill and accused the Speaker of having “cut a deal with the most extreme MAGA elements of his party.” This shitstorm was perhaps best summarized by Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE) when he said it’s “completely appropriate” for members of Congress to debate and discuss spending as an annual practice, but “It is not appropriate to use the loaded gun of default to coerce a particular menu of cuts.” That’s much more polite than I would have been.

Friends of the pod, Crooked is venturing across the pond with our brand new podcast Pod Save the UK ([link removed]) ! This hilarious and insightful new podcast is your go-to source for everything UK politics. Hosted by comedian Nish Kumar and journalist Coco Khan, it's everything you love about Crooked podcasts, but with a British twist. From strikes to scandals, they cover all the topics that matter.

From the minds of Crooked Media and our friends at Reduced Listening, you won't want to miss a single episode of Pod Save The UK ([link removed]) , Listen to the trailer ([link removed]) now, wherever you get your podcasts!
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In a struggle that is making us somehow root for a huge corporation, Disney sued Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) on Wednesday ([link removed]) , alleging that the governor’s only basis for trying to commandeer its Florida theme park was a “targeted campaign of government retaliation” after the company publicly opposed DeSantis’s so-called “Don’t Say Gay'' law. The suit directly coincided with the DeSantis-appointed Disney World oversight board voting to void a deal that gave the company local autonomy over design and construction decisions. DeSantis, who has attempted to position himself as a “no-drama,” further-right version of Trump, has done nothing except embroil himself in culture-war issues, and his decision to take aim at such a beloved institution is a big political head-scratcher. Disney’s lawsuit has been assigned to Judge Mark
Walker, a notably progressive Obama appointee ([link removed]) who has struck down many of DeSantis’ most notorious anti-free speech measures in Florida.

Montana State House Republicans have officially voted to ban Rep. Zooey Zephyr (D-MT) from attending or speaking during floor sessions for the rest of the legislative term ([link removed]) . Zephyr, a trans woman, was punished for refusing to apologize for saying that her GOP colleagues would have “blood on their hands” if they passed legislation banning gender-affirming healthcare for transgender youth, a reference for the reduction in suicidality when trans youth can receive the care they seek.


Disgraced fake-biotech CEO Elizabeth Holmes has once again delayed the start to her 11-year prison sentence ([link removed]) by filing an appeal of the judge’s decision on her date to report to prison.


Gov. Doug Burgum (R-ND) signed a bill into law that will prohibit transgender minors and adults from using bathrooms, locker rooms, or showers that match the gender they identify with ([link removed]) .


The territory of American Samoa has issued a public-health emergency after a measles outbreak spread throughout the island ([link removed]) .


Longtime magazine columnist and writer E. Jean Carroll took the stand in a New York City court room and testified under oath that Donald Trump raped her in 1996 ([link removed]) .


Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan said that the U.S. government will “not hesitate to crack down” on nefarious business practices involving artificial intelligence ([link removed]) .


Former Trump U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley said she would welcome Disney in her state of South Carolina, a direct hit at Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) ([link removed]) for his war on the corporation.


Presidents Bush and Obama’s former NSA director Gen. Keith Alexander has “won” a $2 million job consulting for countries such as…Saudi Arabia ([link removed]) .
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell defended the ethics of the conservative Supreme Court Majority ([link removed]) , so now you know without a doubt that they’re unethical.

As if the Nazi memorabilia were not enough, here are some more unsettling facts about billionaire GOP mega donor (and personal benefactor of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas) Harlan Crow. Crow and his family were granted passports for St. Kitts and Nevis, a notorious tax haven that deals in a cash-for-citizenship scheme and promises impermeable financial secrecy ([link removed]) for billionaires like Crow. Financial-transparency experts have noted that the island’s tax officials would ensure that Crow’s assets would be extremely difficult to track. According to a collaborative report of international investigative journalism, customers of agencies that obtain tax haven passports are disproportionately oligarchs, fugitives, and businesspeople of dubious repute. On Monday, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden sent Crow a letter requesting that he provide evidence
that he “complied with all relevant federal tax and ethics laws.” St. Kitts and Nevis has been designated on the European Union’s list of “non-cooperative jurisdictions,” referencing obstinance to global efforts to combat money laundering and other financial crimes. Wow, this Harlan Crow guy is so nakedly corrupt I bet we’ll see him on the 2024 Republican ticket.
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The co-founder of We Build The Wall, Brian Kolfage, was sentenced to four years in prison ([link removed]) for stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars from donors. Grifters gonna grift!


President Joe Biden released his first re-election ad and folks, it’s a good one ([link removed]) .

European regulatory authorities are finalizing a major crackdown to curb the power of digital platform giants ([link removed]) like TikTok, Twitter, Facebook, Google, and Amazon.
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