Friend,
Welcome to our weekly “Trumptastrophe” email series that serves to remind us of the destructive policies, decisions, and actions we encountered during the Trump presidency and the threats that he and others in the MAGA movement still pose – and to keep those moments clear in our memory as we fight to defeat Republican extremists during the upcoming elections.
This week’s Trumptastrophe focuses on former President Trump’s failed promises to overturn the wildly popular Affordable Care Act – a hallmark piece of legislation from the Obama administration that improved access to health care for millions of Americans. Despite Trump’s failed attempts to overturn the ACA, the Far Right’s efforts to undermine it or repeal it have shown no signs of slowing down and they are certain to try to again if they win this November:
On June 25, 2020, the Trump administration filed a brief asking the U.S. Supreme Court to rule that the Affordable Care Act was unconstitutional and invalid. HuffPo reporter Mary Papenfuss noted at the time, “The late-night move, taken as coronavirus cases reach record levels, threatens the health insurance of millions of Americans.”
Then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi slammed the administration: “If President Trump gets his way, 130 million Americans with pre-existing conditions will lose the ACA’s lifesaving protections and 23 million Americans will lose their health coverage entirely,” she said. “There is no legal justification and no moral excuse for the Trump Administration’s disastrous efforts to take away Americans’ health care.”
The administration’s brief was filed in California v. Texas, a case that raised questions about standing and the constitutionality of the ACA’s individual mandate after the Republican Congress reduced the penalty for noncompliance to zero. At issue was whether the rest of the law could remain in effect even if the mandate was ruled unconstitutional. The case was complicated, but the goal of the MAGA Republican state attorneys general who filed the case was simple: abolish the ACA.
The case was argued before the Supreme Court on Nov. 10, 2020, while Trump was scheming to remain in power after losing the election the week before. Shortly after President Joe Biden took office, the Justice Department notified the court that the federal government had changed its position and urged the court to uphold the ACA. The court ruled in June 2021 that the plaintiffs were not injured by the law and therefore did not have standing to challenge it, effectively overturning the lower court’s decision and keeping the law in place.
Much like Trump’s never-fulfilled promises on infrastructure, his campaign pledge to replace “Obamacare” with “something terrific” never materialized. His first half-baked effort was withdrawn in the face of withering criticism, leading Trump to claim falsely that he had never promised immediate repeal.
A few months later, congressional Republican leaders tried to ram through a partial repeal that the Congressional Budget Office said would have raised premiums by 20 percent and left tens of millions of people uninsured. It would have threatened protections for pre-existing conditions. Trump backed the effort, which failed when a few Republican senators joined Democrats in voting against it.
“Trump had four years to replace — or at least remake — the Affordable Care Act,” CNN noted this April. While he wasn’t able to get rid of it, the changes he did make weakened protections for insured people and, in CNN’s words, “unleashed uncertainty into the marketplace.”
As the Democratic Party has reminded supporters, “Trump spent his entire presidency trying (and failing) to get rid of the ACA while making it harder for people to sign up for health care.” And he’s still trying.
Campaigning to get back in power, Trump says that “Obamacare sucks.” He claims that he’ll improve the ACA, but he hasn’t revealed an actual plan. The Trump campaign’s Agenda 47 website promises “better health care choices at lower costs” without revealing how that would be accomplished.
Trump’s hostility to “Obamacare” is not shared by the American people. Most Americans, including nearly two-thirds of independents, view the law favorably. During this year’s open enrollment period, a record number of Americans—21.3 million—got health insurance through the ACA marketplace. That reality makes it clear that replacing the law would be difficult and unpopular, even if Trump’s rhetoric pleases the anti-government zealots and free-enterprise fundamentalists in his base who don’t believe the government has a role to play in ensuring Americans access to health care.
In this year’s State of the Union address, President Biden said the ACA is “still a very big deal” and warned that many Republicans want to repeal it. Biden also talked about how giving Medicare the power to negotiate lower prescription drug prices—a feature of Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act—is saving consumers and taxpayers money. That policy is something Trump’s Project 2025 allies are hoping to eliminate when they “take the reins” of government if he wins.
Trump’s record on the Affordable Care Act reminds us that he’s better at political posturing than at actual governing—and that he’s more than willing to throw vulnerable Americans under the bus for a chance to claim a political victory. Maybe Trump’s campaign materials should carry a warning: Voting for this candidate has been shown to be harmful to your health.
These are just some of the reasons we need YOU in this fight. So, find your favorite way to unwind after reading through this week’s recap, and then make a plan for how you will fight back this week, this month, this election cycle.
For members who are interested in sharing the weekly Trumptastrophe series, you can find all previous editions on our website! This post will be published by Thursday so you can share with your friends and family and remind them of the importance of ensuring that Trump is defeated again this November.
Thanks for all that you do to defeat Republican extremism.
– People For the American Way
| DONATE NOW |
|
Do not reply directly to this e-mail. Please use [email protected].
Trouble viewing the email?
This email was sent to [email protected]. If you have any thoughts, comments, or criticisms, or if there's a better email address at which to reach you, please let us know. If you'd like to unsubscribe from our list, you can do that here.
|
