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Obamacare

Bongino Sounds Off on Hillary, NFL Protests, GOP Failure on Obamacare

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In a week full of of political frustration, former Secret Service Agent Dan Bongino is blasting Hillary Clinton for blaming racism and uninformed women for her defeat, NFL players for not standing for our national anthem, and the latest failure of Republicans to address Obamacare.

Bongino served 12 years in the U.S. Secret Service after spending multiple years before that with the NYPD.  Since retiring from the Secret Service in 2011, Bongino ran twice for the House of Representatives and once for U.S. Senate.  He is also a conservative commentator and author of the new book “Protecting the President: An Inside Account of the Troubled Secret Service in an Era of Evolving Threats.”

Bongino served on the protective detail for Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama.  In 2000, he was part of the detail protecting First Lady Hillary Clinton as she campaigned for U.S. Senate in New York.  He says it was a nightmare as Mrs. Clinton, through her staff, made it clear they were to protect the candidate but never be visible so the public would see her as “approachable.”

As Clinton makes the rounds promoting her new book on the 2016 campaign, Bongino says he is infuriated by Clinton’s attitudes towards those who did not support her.  As an unsuccessful candidate in a very close race, Bongino says he knows how tough it is to lose, but he says Hillary is taking her frustration to a different level.

“Now it’s not that she lost and she’s blaming people.  It’s that she lost because we’re all racists and women who voted for Trump are all unacceptable examples of females.  It’s so personally condescending that I felt the need to tell people who Hillary really is,” said Bongino.

On Monday, Bongino tweeted, “I worked with Hillary. Hillary is an obnoxious, rude, condescending, fraud who cares about ONE thing-herself.”

He doubled down later in the week.

“I’ve seen her behind the scenes.  She’s not a good person.  She’s condescending.  She’s rude.  She’s obnoxious.  She’s fake.  She’s a fraud.  And the fact she gets to go out now on this national scale on this book tour and basically indict every single group or person who didn’t vote for her is really grotesque,” said Bongino.

The new book is the first time Bongino has spoken out on his experiences as a Secret Service agent.  While acknowledging the culture of remaining mum about while on detail, Bongino says speaking out is warranted in the case of Hillary Clinton.

“I get it.  There is an omerta in the Secret Service.  I opened up with this.  I understand that, but I think there are times it’s more appropriate to set the record straight, and the record on Hillary is clear.  She’s a fraud and she’s a fake.  Don’t believe a word she says,” said Bongino.

After putting his life on the line as a police officer and Secret Service agent, Bongino is also appalled at the extent of protests taking place by NFL players during the national anthem.

“I think these guys are a disgrace.  They’re a total disgrace to this country, to our veterans, to our police officers, to people who put out everything.  That flag means something to them.  It’s not a tablecloth.  It’s not a curtain.  This isn’t some joke and it’s really an absolute disgrace that these guys are able to kneel and embarrass our republic like this.

“This is an issue that really hits me deep beneath the skin.  These guys should be humiliated and yet the far left celebrates them as heroes.  It’s a joke,” said Bongino.

During his congressional campaigns, Bongino, like virtually all other Republican candidates, promised to repeal Obamacare if elected to office.  Senate Republicans failed again this week to advance a bill, this one to block grant federal dollars back to the states.

Bongino says the GOP’s inability to get something passed when it controls all the levers of legislative power in Washington is unacceptable.

“This is probably the greatest political disaster and broken promise of our generation.  Is there another way to frame this thing?  Every single Republican in the House or the Senate – outside of Susan Collins, who’s not a Republican, she’s literally a Republican in name only – ran on the issue of repealing Obamacare.  Yet when it came time to do instead of talk, what did they do?  They all folded like cheap suits,” said Bongino.

He fears this series of failures on Obamacare exposes the weakness of Republicans but suspects President Trump won’t take as much heat on this as Congress.

“This is going to have ramifications long past this election.  I think this hurts Republicans.  It doesn’t hurt Donald Trump.  I’m not a Trump acolyte.  I support the president.  I just think this isn’t going to effect Trump.  He’s managed to distance himself from this really pathetic shell of a party we have now,” said Bongino.

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Weiner’s Sentence, GOP’s Latest Health Care Flop, Damage Control for Steelers

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Jim Geraghty of National Review and Greg Corombos of Radio America believe the judge made the right decision in sentencing former congressman/predator Anthony Weiner to 21 months in prison for transferring obscene material to a minor.  They also discuss the latest GOP health care bill going up in flames as some Republicans think it’s not conservative enough and others think it’s too conservative, making the likelihood of anything getting done on this issue in this Congress very slim.  And they’re disturbed as Pittsburgh Steelers offensive tackle – and former Army ranger – Alejandro Villanueva apologizes to his teammates, coaches and the Steelers organization for being the only one on the field Sunday for the national anthem.

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Trump’s Firing Offense, Ugly Anti-Trump Backlash, McCain Breaks Promise Again

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Jim Geraghty of National Review and Greg Corombos of Radio America agree with President Trump’s disapproval for national anthem protests but also believe it is wrong for the president to suggest anyone be fired for their constitutionally-protected beliefs.  They also unload on those who took a knee during the anthem, which turned into a referendum on Trump – a fight Trump is sure to win.  Thy hammer three NFL teams for refusing to take the field for the anthem, blast the Pittsburgh Steelers for condemning their own player who is an Afghanistan war vet for defying the decision and honoring the anthem, and shake their head as Bob Costas frets that the anthem is only used to honor military instead of teachers and social workers.  Finally, they slam John McCain for once again breaking his promise on health care reform and planning to vote against the latest Senate bill.  They also question Rand Paul’s decision to oppose it.

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Rudderless Dems, Kimmel vs. Health Bill, NFL Activism Month?

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Jim Geraghty of National Review and Greg Corombos of Radio America are pleasantly reminded the Democrats are also deeply dysfunctional as former Rep. Harold Ford, Jr. says he doesn’t know what his party’s economic agenda is.  They also sigh as late night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel suddenly becomes the media’s benchmark for whether the latest GOP health care bill is a good idea.  And they groan as four NFL players want to institute a month dedicated to social activism, similar to how the league devotes a month to breast cancer awareness.

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‘It’s Whack Job Economics’

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Five Senate Democrats are now publicly endorsing a government-run, single-payer health care system in a sign the party is quickly rallying to that goal, however the idea promises to be a financial and regulatory nightmare that should compel Republicans to revisit the issue and get it right before the 2018 elections.

On Tuesday, Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, announced he would support the “Medicare for All” legislation sponsored by Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont.

“It’s time to simplify health care and lower patients’ costs, and embrace Medicare for All,” said Merkley, who is now the fifth Senate Democrat to join the cause publicly.  In addition to Sanders, Sens. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., Kamala Harris, D-Calif., and Cory Booker, D-N.J., are all co-sponsoring the bill.

In addition, roughly half the House Democrats are on board with the idea.

Heritage Foundation Senior Fellow Robert Moffit says the Democrats are making their moves now because Republicans failed to get their health care reforms passed in the Senate.

“The immediate reason is the abject failure of Senate Republicans – and it’s the Senate’s fault here – to enact a health care reform bill to repeal and at least partially replace Obamacare,” said Moffit.

“It has created a major health policy vacuum, so the liberals in Congress and elsewhere are ready to fill it, and they’re preparing now for a total government takeover of health care, which is a single-payer system,” said Moffit.

But while touting “Medicare for All” and health care as a right, Moffit says Americans should not miss what is really at stake here.

“What they are proposing is nothing short of a government monopoly over the financing and the delivery of health care,” said Moffit.  “Ultimately what this means is that politicians will be in direct charge of health policy.”

He says Democrats in 2017 are making the exact opposite promise that President Obama made in 2009 and 2010, only this time they would actually keep it.

“When Obama promised he would not take away your plan, that turned out to be false, especially if you were in the individual market.  Here the Democrats in the Senate – Warren, Sanders, Sen. Merkley, John Conyers in the House – they are telling you they are going to take away your health plan,” said Moffit.

With Medicare already in deep debt and staring at $33-44 trillion dollars in unfunded liabilities, Moffit says adding the rest of the nation to the program would require a major wallop to the wallets of taxpayers.

He says California is an important test case.  The state senate there has approved a single-payer plan that would result in a a spending hike of anywhere from 53-110 percent.

“Frankly, it’s whack job economics.  The Senate legislative analysts themselves say that this will require a 15 percent payroll tax,” said Moffit.

Moffit also took aim at Merkley’s assertion that having Medicare for everyone would somehow simplify the health care system.  He says the story of Medicare shows exactly the opposite.

“I think that Merkley is living in an alternative universe.  Anyone who has had to deal with Medicare, members of the medical profession are very familiar with it.  Medicare today is governed by tens of thousands of pages of rules, regulations, and guidelines and medical paperwork is eating up more and more of the time and energy and effort of physicians,” said Moffit.

“If you think that Medicare is a model of administrative efficiency or that Medicare is somehow simple, you’ve got to have rocks in your head.  you’re living on another planet.  Medicare is the Godzilla of government regulation,” said Moffit.

“It imposes enormous administrative costs on doctors, hospitals, clinics, and home health agencies, who have to bear the real costs of complying with Medicare’s regulatory systems,” said Moffit.

Moffit says this is also another clear signal of how far Democrats have moved to the left.

“They’re consumed by identity politics.  They’re eager to impose political correctness as part of an aggressive, counter-cultural agenda.  Now their economic agenda boils down to heavier taxation, higher spending, larger government programs, and even greater government control over our personal lives.  Frankly, if they want to have that debate, I’m ready to go,” said Moffit.

He says the key to foiling a complete government takeover of health care is for Republicans to roll up their sleeves and do health care legislation right this time.  He says failure is not an option.

“This is not an optional matter.  The individual market in the United States is in crisis.  They have no options here.  It’s not a question of what the hell they want to do, pardon me.  They have got to do their job.  If they don’t do their job, millions of Americans get hurt, especially the millions of middle class Americans who today do not get any subsidies whatsoever,” said Moffit.

“Congress has got to get its act together.  They have no choice,” he added.

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GOP Obamacare Debacle, Scaramucci’s Loose Screw, Politics Plunge NFL Ratings

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The Three Martini Lunch is on vacation for the week and will return on Monday, September 11.  Please enjoy this encore presentation of a recent podcast.

Jim Geraghty of National Review and Greg Corombos of Radio America condemn Republican Senators John McCain, Susan Collins, and Lisa Murkowski for failing to deliver on their campaign promises to repeal and replace Obamacare during a vote late Thursday night, while also stressing the mistakes made by GOP leaders and the major flaws in the “skinny repeal”.  Jim mocks new White House Communications Director Anthony Scaramucci for threats and vulgar comments about his colleagues, underscoring already fractious conditions in the new administration.  In an attempt to end the week on a good note, Jim and Greg discuss a new poll showing that more fans stopped watching the NFL last season because of the national anthem protests than for any other reason.

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Dems Coming Clean on Single Payer, Sarsour’s Sick Con Job, Cruel Texas Cartoon

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Alexandra DeSanctis of National Review and Greg Corombos of Radio America are actually glad to see Sen. Kamala Harris and other national Democrats admitting they want single payer, government-run health care for everyone and they hope America is still ready to reject it.  They also hammer radical activist Linda Sarsour for acting as if she’s raising money for hurricane victims when her real goal to build up the bank of her organization to foster division along ethnic, racial, and gender lines.  They also pound Politico for a horrible political cartoon characterizing Texans as confederate, Christian rubes who should realize they are being rescued by government rather than God.  And they close by shaking their heads at the cases of Americans who injured themselves by applying sunscreen directly to their eyeballs to look at the recent solar eclipse.

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‘They’re Furious at Our Senators’

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Rep. Paul Gosar, R-Arizona, is fully behind President Trump’s demand for full congressional funding for a border wall and both he and his constituents are exasperated with the state’s two Republican senators for offering no solutions of their to overhaul or repeal Obamacare.

Gosar is a member of the House Freedom Caucus who fended off a primary challenger backed by national party allies in 2016.  He says the GOP Senate is a major disappointment, with the failure to address Obamacare as the prime example of its inability to get things done.

“What has the Senate done?  They copped out on Obamacare.  And to my senators (Republicans John McCain and Jeff Flake), if you didn’t like what the House put forward, where are your ideas?” said Gosar, a dentist who first ran for Congress as part of the tea party wave in 2010.

He says while politicians are posturing, people in his state are suffering from Obamacare.

“We’re catastrophically moving down this pathway where we’re seeing Americans getting a 40-90 percent increase in their premiums coming up.  Obamacare is failing.  There’s not enough money to fix it.  We’re seeing Medicare being implemented in all the group plans, so it behooves us to be big boys and girls and have that conversation,” said Gosar.

Gosar says the anger of Arizonans towards McCain and Flake is palpable everywhere he goes.

“They’re furious at our senators.  There isn’t one meeting I don’t have where people are going off on our two senators.  Leadership comes at a price and that means you have to put solutions on te table.  That means that ‘No’ can;t be your answer, it’s going to be what it takes to be ‘Yes,'” said Gosar.

In addition to hearing his constituents vent about their senators, he’s also hearing about their hardships created by our current health care system.

“I have represented most of the rural parts of Arizona.  They’ve got a piece of paper that says they have health insurance but they can’t afford to pay the co-pays and deductibles.  It’s a travesty.  They see no job growth out here.  They don’t see opportunity.  Those were all the things they were promised,” said Gosar.

Gosar says Trump has done what we can to improve conditions but Congress needs to do the heavy lifting.

“Whether it be tax breaks, tax cuts, getting government out of the way, this president has done his fair share with the Congressional Review Act and with executive orders to streamline the regulatory process.  Now Congress has got to respond.  It can’t continue working in a broken, dysfunctional fashion,” said Gosar.

Dr. Kelli Ward, a former Arizona state senator, is already running against Flake in next year’s GOP primary.  Ward challenged McCain last year and lost badly in the primary, leaving some conservatives to push for Gosar and other conservatives to enter the fray.

Gosar says he’s thought about but is not close to any decision.

“We’ll see.  That’s as good as we can say at this point in time,” said Gosar.  “We want to make sure that we’re doing the right thing at the right time for the right reason.  I don’t need another title, I’ve got four titles above congressman: that’s a husband, a father, a citizen, and a doctor,” said Gosar.

Just a few days ago, President Trump held a campaign rally in Phoenix.  In addition to sparring with the media and defending his response to the chaos in Charlottesville, Trump demanded Congress fund his central campaign promise of a wall along the southern border, even vowing to shut down the government to make it happen.

Gosar says no one should be surprised by Trump’s blunt tactics.

“This gentleman is not built as a politician and that’s why America voted him in.  He’s a disrupter.  The business as usual has got to stop.  We’re $20 trillion in debt,” said Gosar.

He also says not approving the money would be a huge mistake.

“I don’t think I would cross the president and I don’t think I would cross the American people.  This is something the American people want.  So far the Senate has let them down in regards to promises they made on Obamacare and so I think they’re getting restless.  They don’t see solutions but they see a man that’s struggling to make sure that he honors the promises that he made to those people,” said Gosar.

Gosar also asserts that the controversy over the wall is only a creation of the past decade.

“The wall was authorized over a decade ago and it was a bipartisan effort.  A sovereign country has a right to defend and dictate it’s borders,” said Gosar.

So how did this become such a political lightning rod?

“It’s because the political correctness in the media has gotten into people,” he said.

Another hot-button issue is the renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement, or NAFTA.  He says all contracts ought to be renegotiated every few years and NAFTA has been on the books for more than two decades.  He says the issues of border security and trade are very closely linked.

“I think these are all interwoven and I think the president has a good thought process about how to drag all these together to get what he believes the American people want because they voted for him.  He made no qualms about border security and building the wall,” said Gosar.

Gosar also applauds Trump sending more border patrol agents and immigration judges to stem the tide of illegal entries and to adjudicate cases much more quickly.  He does, however, urge the president to make more personnel nominations in the Justice Department and elsewhere to improve the effort even more.

But with Trump in a very public battle with members of his own party about blame over Obamacare and other issues, will any big ticket items on the GOP agenda actually get done when Congress returns next month?

Gosar says they have no choice.

“Winston Churchill made the famous analogy saying, ‘You can always count on Americans to do the right thing when they’ve exhausted everything else.  Well, here’s our sign looking at Congress..  We’ve exhausted everything else, at least from the House.  We’ve got over 200 bills over there waiting on the Senate to take a look at,” said Gosar.

While he can’t say for sure what will get done, Gosar says if one big thing can get to Trump’s desk, other major priorities will fall like dominoes.

“The atmosphere is going to be very confrontational.  It’s going to be very high stakes.  But once that first brick falls, a lot of this stuff is going to fall right in line,” said Gosar, who personally hopes Obamacare repeal is the first brick to fall.

“I would hope that it’s health care, because I think that sets the stage for tax breaks [and] the budget and that looks at a positive influence for the American people to move forward,” said Gosar.

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GOP’s Endless Infighting, Trump’s Troubling Polls, Hillary’s Delusion

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Jim Geraghty of National Review and Greg Corombos of Radio America sigh as public squabbles between President Trump and GOP congressional leaders and members leaves us wondering if they will get anything consequential accomplished by the end of the year.  They also wince as terrible poll numbers for President Trump on several questions reflect what may be a rough road ahead for Republicans in 2018.  And they roll their eyes and unload on Hillary Clinton over her new book excerpts.

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Can Tarkanian Trump Heller?

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Sen. Dean Heller, R-Nevada, is seen as the most vulnerable Senate Republican in 2018 and now he may have a fight just emerge from the GOP primary thanks to a vigorous, America First challenge from businessman Danny Tarkanian.

In 2018, Republicans are defending just eight seats, while Democrats are trying to protect 25 different seats, many of them in states President Trump carried in 2016.  Heller is one of those eight Republicans on the ballot next year, but his approval numbers in his home state are very low.  Just 22 percent of Nevadans approved of Heller’s job performance in a left-leaning poll released August 1.

The same survey found Nevadans ready to support a generic Democrat over Heller by a 50-31 percent margin.  Tarkanian sees those same numbers and says Heller’s performance in Washington, particularly on Obamacare, is a big reason for the disapproval.

“The people of Nevada are very frustrated with the representation they’ve had from Sen. Heller over the years and I think it culminated with his vote not to repeal Obamacare after he promised to,” said Tarkanian.

“They expect him to keep his word from what he promises when he campaigns when he’s trying to get elected,” said Tarkanian.  “Everywhere I go in this great state of Nevada, I hear people say they’re sick and tired of politicians who promise one thing when they run for office and they do the exact opposite when they get elected.”

Defenders of Heller point out he did not help to kill the Obamacare repeal in the debate because he supported the “skinny repeal” that was eventually sunk by GOP moderates Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski, and John McCain.

Tarkanian is not impressed.

“The skinny repeal was a joke.  It was the worst bill that was proposed out there and it didn’t do anything to lower the premiums for the hard-working middle class Americans that have seen their premiums go up like my family’s: $12,000 a year, our deductibles 500 percent (higher), our co-pay for a specialist doctor 400 percent (higher),” said Tarkanian.

“Dean Heller’s skinny repeal that he brags about that he signed, actually raises the premium another 20 percent more than it’s already going to raise.  It was the worst possible bill out there,” said Tarkanian.

But Tarkanian says Heller was on the wrong side when the chance for real repeal was on the table.

“He promised he would vote to repeal Obamacare.  That is what he did in 2015, when he knew that President Obama would veto it.  Then in 2017, the exact same bill came before him, and he joined six other senators, who had signed for the repeal in 2015 that voted against the repeal this year, knowing President Trump would sign it.  That’s what’s infuriated the people of Nevada,” said Tarkanian.

Tarkanian admits he doesn’t have a lot of political experience but notes that Heller has been in politics for 30 years.  The challenger says his principles are very clear.

“I have worked in the Republican Party as a very strong advocate for conservative principles, America First principles that Donald Trump is talking about.  I never wavered on that support, even though it cost me quite a bit in previous elections because I had the conviction to stand up for what I believed in,” said Tarkanian.

He is running as an enthusiastic supporter of the Trump agenda.

“We have a president who really has the courage and conviction to really try to make substantive and meaningful changes to the way D.C. operates.  Some good things are happening through executive order.  But for him to get his America First agenda passed, he’s going to need senators to support that agenda.  And I fully support the president’s America First agenda,” said Tarkanian.

Aligning so closely with the Trump agenda could be risky in a state Trump lost in 2016 and stands at 40 percent approval.  Tarkanian sees it as a matter of principle.

“It’s the right thing to do.  It’s the only strategy you should look at.  What’s the right thing to do?  The right thing to do is to get President Trump’s America First policies passed,” said Tarkanian.

Tarkanian makes it clear he doesn’t necessarily subscribe to Trump’s political style but they do see eye to eye on policy.  He says the media spend far more time on Trump’s personality, and other than Obamacare, spend hardly any time on policy.

“The only (other) time I’ve seen them attack his policy was on the travel ban.  They haven’t said a single thing about the other things he’s trying to accomplish.  We’re seeing stock market highs virtually daily, unemployment at a 16-year low.  Border crossings are down 70 percent for illegal immigrants.  ISIS is being destroyed in Iraq and Syria,” said Tarkanian.

He is also confident that a conservative can win in an increasingly blue state like Nevada.  Tarkanian points out the GOP swept all the major races in 2014 and a coalition is there for him as well.

“It’s a tough state but it’s not a state that’s out of reach.  There’s six percent more Democrats in the state.  Twenty-three percent of the state is independent.  So if you win the independents and hold you base,a good strong Republican can win,” said Tarkanian.

Tarkanian is the son of the late University of Nevada-Las Vegas basketball coach Jerry Tarkanian, who won a national championship in four trips to the Final Four but also clashed with the NCAA for decades over alleged infractions.

Danny, who played for his father, says he was prepared for politics after watching his father get hammered in the media.

“I had the unfortunate opportunity to watch how the media crucified my father when he was coach,” said Tarkanian.  “So, I’m used to seeing the criticism, and how unfair it was, and how my father handled it.  I think that’s allowed me to handle it much better than almost any other person who has run for public office.”

Tarkanian has run twice for statewide office, twice for the House and once before for Senat.  He lost his most recent race, a 2016, House campaign, by less than 4,000 votes.

“I’ve had some very tough and agonizing losses.  I learned that you fight back from those losses.  You don’t give up.  You show perseverance and a never quit attitude.  That’s the only way you overcome those things.  I think a lot people would have thrown in the towel by now if they were in my shoes.  Because of the way I was raised, that isn’t me,” said Tarkanian.

 

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