Is it really happening? It looks as if Senate Republicans are (finally) openly flouting Donald Trump, who has demanded they keep working on repealing Obamacare. But it seems healthcare is not on Mitch McConnell’s calendar. And Lamar Alexander is planning a post-summer-recess hearing in his Health, Education, Labor and Pensions committee to form a bipartisan plan to strengthen the Obamacare individual insurance market. Via The Washington Post.
Meanwhile, The New York Times is reporting that the Trump administration is ready to go full force against discrimination in college admissions. That would be, of course, discrimination against white students. The Times has a memo showing the Justice Department is staffing up in a move against affirmative action on campus. Who didn’t see this one coming?
The real fake news? A lawsuit alleges that Fox News’ baseless story exploiting the death of Seth Rich was pushed by a wealthy Trump supporter working in concert with Fox News and with the full knowledge of the White House, including the president. In other words, another day in TrumpWorld. Via NPR.
Sen. Jeff Flake has excerpts of his new book bashing fellow Senate Republicans, and also himself, for enabling Trump — Conscience of a Conservative — in a piece in Politico. Be careful while reading. There are bombshells everywhere.
For his re-election campaign, Flake is relying on ordinary decency to get him over the top. Can that still work in today’s America? Via The Atlantic.
From The National Review, don’t let liberals define the conservative opposition to Trump. It’s up to conservatives to do it on their own.
Mooch and Priebus, who couldn’t be more different, proved to be very much alike in one critical way: No one survives the Trump White House. Via Rolling Stone.
And now for our comic relief interlude: Here’s the president of the United States saying in a Wall Street Journal interview how surprised he is that some Asian nations are quite large. Via Vox.
It’s time for Washington and Seoul to play good cop, bad cop with North Korea, or anything, really, that suggests America and its close ally are working together against the growing danger in North Korea. Via Foreign Policy.
Among her other talents, Patti Smith is a brilliant writer. And her moving remembrance of her buddy, Sam Shepard, is a story you’re not likely to forget. Via The New Yorker.
Photo credit: greyloch, Creative Commons, Flickr
Should transgenders be allowed to serve in the military? Iraq combat veteran J.R. Salzman doesn’t think so and transgender author Walt Heyer agrees. Via The Federalist.
http://thefederalist.com/2017/07/27/trump-keeping-trans-people-military-good-decision/
On Wednesday the Dow Jones industrial average reached another milestone breaking above 22,000 for the first time. That’s good news for all those willing to report it. Via CNBC
https://www.cnbc.com/2017/08/01/apple-tech-stocks-soar-after-hours-set-to-lead-dow-to-22000-record-wednesday.html
“A massive transformation is underway in how our fundamental rights are defined by the federal judiciary. For while President Trump is incompetent at countless aspects of his job, he is proving wildly successful in one respect: naming youthful conservative nominees to the federal bench in record-setting numbers.” . That from veteran Democratic official Ron Klain. In addition, President Trump may appoint one or two more Supreme Court justices. Via The Atlantic.
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2017/08/what-trump-is-actually-accomplishing/535458/
Barack Obama’s promise that federal subsidies (aka risk corridor payments) necessary to keep Obamacare’s health insurance exchanges afloat would be an obligation Washington would have to keep appears to be in question.. Via The New Hampshire Union Leader.
http://www.unionleader.com/editorial/Obamas-promises-Still-not-worth-anything-08022017
Leaders of the highly publicized Women’s March may in reality be hate-filled bigots whose views are ignored by those who have embraced the march as a sign of so-called resistance to President Trump. Via The New York Times.
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/01/opinion/womens-march-progressives-hate.html
A new Politico/Morning Consult poll shows 60 percent of registered voters favor President Trump’s travel ban involving six predominately Muslim countries. Via Newsmax.
http://www.newsmax.com/Politics/poll-voters-support-trump/2017/07/05/id/799828/?roi=echo3-45170943116-43130040-a59426113d1f89e6ed26cdc0a04673eb&
Want to know how a single-payer health system works in Britain? The medical staff at a hospital in the UK determined, against the parents wishes, that a 10-month-old baby with a rare disease, mitochondrial depletion syndrome, should “die with dignity”. Via The Chicago Tribune
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/editorials/ct-charlie-gard-single-payer-edit-0706-20170706-story.html