Two Women and A Maverick

Obamacare Lives:  Senate Majority Leader McConnell couldn’t pass any health care bill through the Senate.  Between the parliamentarian’s rulings and his warring factions the best he could offer was a plan so skinny that it was anorexic.   The plan eliminated the individual and employee mandates and the medical equipment tax, but kept the defunding of Planned Parenthood and left Medicaid intact.  It was so bad that on Thursday afternoon Senators Graham, Cassidy, McCain and Johnson held a press conference to say that they would only vote for it to pass if House Majority Leader Ryan would promise to throw it out and start from scratch, writing a new version with their input in a joint conference committee.  The four guys were jovial but somewhat incoherent as they went on to trash the legislative process.  Though they tried to present a uniform front, they each had a different view of what a final health care plan should include. McCain said that the plan would have to meet the needs of Arizona’s governor, and though he didn’t share it he had a list of key items that his governor wanted tucked away neatly in his pocket.  Cassidy and Graham had their own plan that involved giving the states block grants to spend as they want on health care.  It wasn’t totally clear what Johnson wanted.  McCain also said that he wanted a bipartisan process but none of the other three seemed all that concerned about getting any Democrats on board. After Paul Ryan agreed to the conference plan scheme, it looked like the four Senators were back on board and that the anorexic bill would pass through the Senate. The final vote took place early this morning  at 130 AM.  It was a nail biter. Of the four Senators who giddily expressed their concerns on Thursday, only McCain stood by his words.  Together with Senators Lisa Murkowski and Susan Collins he provided the critical third “no” vote. The Senate gasped in surprise. OBAMACARE L.IVES!  Planned Parenthood survives another day. John McCain proved he really is a Maverick. Trump tweeted “let Obamacare implode.”   The Senate is now moving on to the Defense bill.

A Women Scorned:  Before the health care vote, Lisa Murkowski didn’t seem at all intimidated by Interior Secretary Zinke’s unethical threats to cut Federal assistance to all things Alaskan as punishment if she didn’t get on Trump’s health care train.  Murkowski is in her third term, isn’t up for reelection until 2022, and previously withstood a challenge from a Tea Party candidate so little phases her.  She is also the Chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee and the Senate Appropriations Interior and Environment Subcommittee. She is not someone that Zinke should want to piss off, but he did.  Yesterday, she put off confirmation hearings for several of Zinke’s nominees until some as yet unscheduled date. And then she stood up to Trump, Zinke and McConnell by voting no for the Republican healthcare plan.    

Office Politics:  Right about now Sean Spicer is having a martini in a bunny suit and negotiating a contract to appear on one or more cable news programs, assuming he isn’t off practicing for his other offer, a spot on next season’s Dancing With the Stars.  He has got to be happy about his decision to quit rather than report to Trump’s new Communications Director Scaramucci.  Yesterday the Smooch launched a profanity laden rant against leakers calling Chief of Staff Priebus a f-cking schizophrenic, a paranoiac.  His words for Steve Bannon, involved some contortionist moves.  He called for everyone on the White House staff to be fired, or else.  Later in the day, he excused his vulgar take down, saying that’s just the way guys like him speak.  Scaramucci is in the process of selling his stake in Skybridge, a fund of funds, to a Chinese investor.  His sale needs government approval so keeping Trump happy helps him cash out.  He hasn’t passed his ethics review yet but so far he’s succeeding where it counts.  Trump has a new quality guy on his team.

Still in Session: Jeff Sessions said that he’s had better weeks but plans to stay on as Attorney General unless he is fired and with that he flew off for a few sunny days in  El Savador to combat the drug trade.  Senator Lindsey Graham spoke for most of the Senate by saying that if Sessions is fired “there will be holy hell to pay.” Adding that any effort to get rid of Special Counsel Mueller could be the “beginning of the end of the Trump presidency.”  Senator Graham also said that he plans to introduce a bill preventing any president from firing a special counsel.  It’s not clear that others will go as far as Graham to ensure that the rule of law is maintained.

Collateral Fallout: There were so many complaints from parents of Boy Scouts that the leader of the organization felt compelled to send out a letter apologizing for Trump’s wildly inappropriate speech to the young, impressionable crowd.  Trump’s Generals were so taken aback and surprised by his anti-transgender tweet, that the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff reassured transgender soldiers, telling them to stay in place while he figures out whether he can get the policy reversed. National security advisor McMaster fired one of the remaining Mike Flynn holdovers, a hard line advisor on the Middle East whose portfolio included Iran. The action may make it easier for McMaster to convince Trump to be reasonable the next time the Iran nuclear agreement comes up for recertification.  The Russian sanctions legislation was sent to Trump’s desk yesterday for his signature.  It’s not clear whether he will sign it or face what is likely be a humiliating veto.  This morning in response to the new sanctions and facing the reality that he isn’t getting his compounds back anytime soon,  Putin seized two US properties and demanded a reduction in US Embassy staff, the retaliation that had been expected in the Fall after Obama seized the Russian properties and kicked Putin’s spies out.  Putin is just a wee bit disappointed in the performance of the guy he backed for President.