Demand Congress reinstate DACA. U.S. SENATOR ED MARKEY.

Republican leaders in Congress don't think reinstating Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) is important. Senator McConnell said: "There is no crisis. There's no emergency." Speaker Paul Ryan said: "The deadline is March... We've got other deadlines in front of that." And while they sit in their offices, worrying about other things, an estimated 122 DREAMers lose their DACA protections every day. I think that's important. I think the nearly 800,000 DREAMers in this country, and their families, would say it's important, too. ...demand that Republicans in Congress get moving and restore DACA. Thank you. Ed

REMEMBER THIS: Wednesday, June 28, 2017. Repealing and Replacing the Affordable Care Act: THE GOP SENATE REVEALS ITS INTENT- MORE GREED, DECEPTION, AND PRIVILEGE.

THE ARTICLE BELOW WAS PUBLISHED ON 6/28/2017, AND DEALT WITH THE ATTEMPTS BY REPUBLICANS TO ELIMINATE THE AFFORDABLE CARE ACT.* 

THE QUESTION IS THIS: IN PRACTICAL TERMS, HOW ARE THE AMERICAN PEOPLE BETTER SERVED BY THE NEW TAX ACT? 

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YES, I KNOW THAT THE REPUBLICAN PARTY WITHDREW THIS LEGISLATION BEFORE

A VOTE COULD BE TAKEN, BUT DON'T BE SUPRISED IF THE NEW "WORDING" IS JUST
"REPACKAGING" THE SAME MATERIAL YOU SEE BELOW.

The following is taken from excerpts contained in the NPR ARTICLE:  "GOP Senate Bill Would Cut Health Care Coverage By 22 Million", Written by SCOTT HORSELY.

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Congressional forecasters say a Senate bill that aims to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act would leave 22 million more people uninsured by 2026. That's only slightly fewer uninsured than a VERSION PASSED IN THE HOUSE .
Monday's report from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office could give moderate senators concerned about health care coverage pause. Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, was quick to register her opposition to the bill.
Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell wants a vote on the bill this week, before senators head home for the July Fourth recess. With Senate Democrats united in opposition, Republicans can afford to lose only two votes on their side and still pass the bill.
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THE FOLLOWING PASSAGE BRINGS US TO THE FIRST IMPORTANT  POINT.
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According to the CBO, the Senate bill does reduce the deficit by $321 billion over the next 10 years, which $202 billion more than the House version that passed last month. Although people buying insurance in the individual market would see lower premiums in many cases, the policies would cover less, and out-of-pocket costs would be higher.

The Senate bill would cut hundreds of billions of dollars in taxes over the coming decade, with most of the savings going to those at the top of the income ladder. At the same time, it would phase out the Affordable Care Act's Medicaid expansion, while offering less generous subsidies to those who purchase health insurance on the individual market. That combination is expected to reduce the number of people with insurance coverage by 15 million in 2018 and 22 million by 2026.

The CBO says low-income Americans in their 50s and early 60s would be disproportionately likely to lose their health care coverage under the Senate bill.

"Despite being eligible for premium tax credits, few low-income people would purchase any plan," the CBO said.
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What should we take from this?
Well the GOP are hoping that you pay attention to the "Reduce the Deficit" by 321 billion over the next ten years, and ignore everything else. For example, Do You see the line:

"The Senate bill would cut hundreds of billions of dollars in taxes over the coming decade, with most of the savings going to those 'at the top of the income ladder.".Well,This is an action that would increase the deficit, not lower it.

Tax Breaks/ Cutting Taxes are ways that allow the Individual or Business to keep more money, by owing less to the Government. Naturally, revenue from this area would be decreased, so the FEDERAL GOVERNMENT WILL HAVE LESS TO SPEND.

To make up for this loss of revenue, and still shrink the deficit, the following must happen:
NEW SOURCES OF REVENUE MUST BE FOUND, OR CURRENT SOURCES MUST BE MADE TO CONTRIBUTE MORE...
...AND/OR...
...GOVERNMENT SPENDING MUST BE DECREASED ENOUGH TO OFFSET THE MASSIVE LOSS OF REVENUE, SO CUTS MUST BE MADE.
IT APPEARS THE REPUBLICAN PARTY IS WILLING TO SACRIFICE THE HEALTH OF ITS CITIZENS TO MEET THIS NEED.

*AT THIS TIME 3 REPUBLICAN SENATORS VOTED AGAINST REPEALING IT, SO IT WAS THOUGHT THAT PERHAPS PART OF THE GOP ACTUALLY CARED ABOUT THE PUBLIC AT LARGE. AS WE KNOW NOW, THE ANSWER IS NO.

THE NEW TAX PLAN: PREDICTING THE FUTURE? LEARN FROM THE PAST.

Let us consider the following;

If a MEMBER OF EITHER THE HOUSE OR SENATE represents a STATE THAT;

-  HAS A HIGHER THAN AVERAGE POVERTY RATE.

-  SETS A MINIMUM WAGE BELOW THE FEDERAL STANDARD.

-  IS RELUCTANT TO SUPPORT A UNIVERSAL HEALTH PLAN THAT
WOULD BENEFIT ALL OF ITS RESIDENTS.

-  HAS A LOW REGARD FOR EDUCATION, ESPECIALLY THE SCIENCES.

-  DOES NOT EMPHASIZE PROTECTIONS FOR THE EMPLOYEE, BUT LEAVES
THAT TO THE WHIMS OF THE EMPLOYER.

- TRIES TO ADMINISTER JUSTICE ACCORDING TO THE FAITH AND 
RELIGIOUS BELIEFS OF THOSE IN POWER.

WHAT WOULD YOU SAY ABOUT SUCH A POLITICIAN? 

NOW, SUPPOSE THAT MEMBER OF CONGRESS HAS SERVED FOR YEARS,
AND THROUGH "SENIORITY" HAS GAINED POWER OVER OTHER MEMBERS
OF CONGRESS, INFLUENCING OR PREVENTING LEGISLATION THAT OTHERS
THINK NECESSARY.

WHAT WOULD YOU SAY ABOUT THAT POLITICIAN?

NOW, AS WE LOOK BACK OVER THIS POLITICIANS CAREER, WE SEE THAT
THE PEOPLE REPRESENTED BY THIS MEMBER OF CONGRESS ARE NOT
MUCH BETTER OFF, (STANDARD OF LIVING, HEALTH, EDUCATION.), THAN 
THEY WERE BEFORE THIS "PUBLIC SERVANT" CAME TO WASHINGTON, D.C.
FURTHER, WHEN WE LOOK AT THE PUBLIC RECORD, IT SEEMS THAT LITTLE
WAS DONE, PROPOSED, OR SUPPORTED BY THIS ELECTED OFFICIAL THAT 
WOULD ALLEVIATE THE PROBLEMS OF THE CONSTITUENCY.

WHAT WOULD YOU SAY ABOUT THAT POLITICIAN?

NOW WHAT WOULD YOU SAY IF THAT POLITICIAN WAS GIVEN THE 
POWER TO INFLUENCE THE COURSE OF THE ENTIRE COUNTRY, FREE
TO USE THEIR EXPERTISE FOR THE "GOOD" OF ALL.

WELL...

...WHY DON'T WE TAKE A LOOK AT THOSE WHO AUTHORED THE NEW 
REPUBLICAN "TAX PLAN", AND SEE WHO IS IN CHARGE OF DETERMINING 
THE ECONOMIC FUTURE OF THE U.S...

NEWTOWN. U.S. SENATOR CHRIS MURPHY.

I love Newtown. I love the people. I love the landscape. I love the annual Labor Day parade. I love it more now, having watched the town wrestle over the unanswerable question of what to be in the wake of unimaginable tragedy.

Newtown is different than it was before the events of December 14, 2012. Of course it is. No place could ever recover from that cataclysm – twenty first-graders and six educators disappearing from the earth in the matter of five life-shattering minutes. But there is true beauty in how this small town in western Connecticut has responded and rebounded. Today, as America marks five years since the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, we should celebrate the miracles, big and small, of the last half decade.

Miracles like those performed by the numerous charitable organizations started by the parents of the Sandy Hook victims. Organizations that are partnering at-risk kids with therapeutic animals or funding research on the intersection between mental illness and violence or teaching schoolchildren how to recognize and combat social isolation. Their work has improved and saved countless lives.

Miracles like those that happen every day in the lives of the family members left behind. The gaping, yawning holes are still there – but the mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters, have found a way to build meaningful lives in the wake of unimaginable loss. I have been lucky to witness firsthand this regrowth of purpose in so many families that I call friends.

Miracles like the day last December when several Sandy Hook parents stood quietly at the back of an auditorium as President Obama signed into law the most comprehensive reform of our nation’s mental health laws in a generation – a bill that would not have become law without the input and activism of the gun violence survivors’ community.

Newtown will never be the same. And having been there to witness the day’s events firsthand, I know I will never be the same. My life changed that day. I now wake up every day knowing that my political career will be a failure if I do not change the laws of this nation to meaningfully reduce the chances that something like that will ever happen again.

But tonight, as I gather with family and community members in Newtown to remember the beauty that was extinguished from the earth five years ago today, I will not wallow in what has not been accomplished.

Instead, I will remember the two simple words whispered to me by one Sandy Hook mom earlier this year. As I readied to leave my office one evening, the front desk rang me to say that one of the Sandy Hook parents had dropped by unannounced. Of course, send her in, I said. She walked into my office, and without saying a word, draped her arms around me in a giant, warm bear hug.

“Keep going,” she said quietly to me. She wiped a few tears back, took a few steps backwards, and continued, “That’s all I wanted to say.” Then she left, unable to muster the energy to say anything more.

Newtown isn’t the same. I’m not the same. And I doubt you’re the same.

But five years later, we keep going. And we celebrate the miracles that continue to implausibly blossom all around us.

Chris Murphy
U.S. Senator, Connecticut.