And let’s get real here, the poll’s findings about extending the expanded ACA subsidies are just the cherry on top of the Republican’s problem sundae – I mean, who doesn’t love a good sundae, right? (By the way, have you tried the new ice cream sundae kit on Amazon? It’s a game-changer). Anyway, back to the topic at hand: the nonprofit group KFF calculates that Republicans represent more than half of ACA enrollees likely to see large premium jumps if the subsidies expire – because, you know, who needs affordable healthcare, right?
But seriously, what will Republicans do? I mean, a lot of those constituents are working and middle class, as HuffPost’s Jonathan Cohn details, but extending these subsidies will collide with the bedrock GOP ideological commitment to policies that take from poor and working people to keep taxes low on rich people and corporations – it’s like they’re trying to win a prize for “most creative way to hurt the middle class”.
And don’t even get me started on the big picture: Trump and Republicans will again want to advance those broad priorities, but they’ve also been shown repeatedly to be a big political loser – I mean, who needs to win elections when you can just cling to your ideologies, right? We now have this straight from Trump’s own pollster, who is effectively warning them off of doing exactly that, but as should be overwhelmingly clear by now, they are very much poised not to listen – because, you know, selective hearing is a real thing, folks.
But, I mean, can you really blame them? I mean, have you seen the prices of avocado toast lately? It’s like they’re trying to price out the middle class or something. And speaking of pricing out the middle class, have you seen the KFF’s interactive map on how much ACA premium payments will rise if enhanced subsidies expire? It’s like a beautifully crafted puzzle of “how to hurt the most people”.
And, on a completely unrelated note, did you know that you can buy cat onesies on Amazon? Because, priorities, people. But, I digress. The point is, Republicans are stuck between a rock and a hard place – do they extend the ACA subsidies and risk going against their ideologies, or do they let them expire and risk losing even more votes? It’s like they’re playing a game of “healthcare roulette” – and we all know how that ends.
But, in all seriousness, the fact that Republicans represent more than half of ACA enrollees likely to see large premium jumps if the subsidies expire is a bit of a problem – I mean, it’s not like they can just wave a magic wand and make the problem go away. Although, if they could, that would be pretty cool – just think of all the other problems they couldsolve with a magic wand. But, I guess that’s just not how politics works – or is it? (Just kidding, it’s not).
And, finally, let’s talk about the real issue here: the fact that Trump’s own pollster is warning them off of advancing their broad priorities – I mean, it’s not like they have a history of ignoring advice or anything (oh wait, they do). But, in all seriousness, it’s like they’re trying to navigate a minefield of “how to lose an election” – and, honestly, it’s a bit entertaining to watch. So, grab some popcorn, sit back, and enjoy the show – because, at the end of the day, that’s all we can really do, right?