Healthcare déjà vu

WASHINGTON—Senate Republicans plan to vote on a new healthcare proposal next week before the GOP runs out of time to deliver on its promise of repealing and replacing Obamacare.

Republicans failed to coalesce around a healthcare package earlier this year, although party leaders modified the bill several times trying to find a compromise between the GOP’s conservative and moderate wings.

Sens. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Bill Cassidy of Louisiana resurrected the Republican effort last week with a new proposal. Together they’ve gained considerable support but still lack the 50 votes needed to pass the measure. Unless something changes, the last-ditch effort will end the same way as before—in failure.

The first time Republicans tried to pass a healthcare reform package, GOP Sens. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Susan Collins of Maine, and John McCain of Arizona shot down the effort. None of the three have said they will vote any differently this time around.

Murkowski maintains she’s waiting to see data on how the Graham-Cassidy bill would affect her home state. But she’s not going to get those numbers before the vote.

The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) announced this week it would not be able to complete a full analysis of the bill before the Sept. 30 deadline. The agency aims to release some basic budgetary estimates required by reconciliation rules early next week, but it won’t provide details about practical implications of the bill, including how it will affect premiums and how many people could lose their healthcare coverage.

Collins told reporters this week she fears the Graham-Cassidy bill would charge people with pre-existing conditions more money for coverage in some states.

This bill is similar to the last GOP healthcare proposal in some respects. It immediately removes two of the Affordable Care Act’s most unpopular provisions: the individual and employer mandates to buy health insurance. The bill also repeals the medical device tax and defunds Planned Parenthood for one year.

But it structures the U.S. healthcare system much differently. It seeks to grant states more discretion in how they can spend healthcare funds. It also axes many of the federal Obamacare taxes and subsidies. Instead, states would receive block grants to allocate any way they want. The bill takes money that would have gone to premium tax credits and the Medicaid expansion under Obamacare and divides it among individual states. Some states would end up with more money for healthcare costs while others would see a decrease, compared to current law.

McCain has made few comments on the substance of the bill and continues to tell reporters he wants “regular order.” The senior senator from Arizona doesn’t like the bill rushing through the chamber so quickly without a full analysis from the CBO and sufficient time for debate.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the Republican ideological spectrum, Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky said he would vote against the bill because it does not repeal enough of Obamacare, granting the Obama-era overhaul “amnesty” instead.

“Rand Paul is a friend of mine but he is such a negative force when it comes to fixing healthcare,” President Donald Trump tweeted Wednesday. “Graham-Cassidy Bill is GREAT! Ends Ocare!”

Despite opposition, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., intends to hold a vote on the Graham-Cassidy bill next week. But it will be another wasted effort unless he can persuade at least two naysayers to change their minds.

Sen. James Lankford Associated Press/Photo by Manuel Balce Ceneta

Congress revives D.C. assisted suicide ban

In February, Republicans in Congress punted on an opportunity to prevent Washington, D.C., from legalizing assisted suicide. It was a major blow to pro-life advocates who expected lawmakers to act.

But they still have time to fix it.

Last week, the House of Representatives voted on an appropriations package to block five District of Columbia laws, including the district’s decree legalizing assisted suicide. The D.C. Council passed the Death with Dignity Act last year, and the mayor signed it into law in December. It allows terminally ill adults given six months or less to live the ability to obtain lethal drugs from a physician.

Federal statute grants Congress jurisdiction over the District of Columbia and allows 30 congressional workdays to review legislation passed by the council. Lawmakers in the House and Senate introduced a joint resolution disapproving D.C.’s Death With Dignity Act, but party leaders chose not to schedule a vote in time, allowing the law to go into effect.

But Reps. Brad Wenstrup, R-Ohio, and Andy Harris, R-Md., helped include language in last week’s appropriations package and are urging the Senate to advance the bill before someone kills themselves under D.C. law.

Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., chairs the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs subcommittee, which has jurisdiction over the District of Columbia. He’s still discussing next steps to ensure the assisted suicide ban can pass through the upper chamber.

“Congress has clearly spoken on this issue—no federal dollars can be used for assisted suicide,” Lankford told me in a written statement. “Despite this unequivocal prohibition, the District of Columbia passed the Death With Dignity Act to legalize assisted suicide in our nation’s capital. As the Constitution provides Congress with oversight of the district, we have an obligation not only to ensure compliance with federal law but to protect the most vulnerable among us from the dangers of assisted suicide.”

Democratic Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton, who represents the District of Columbia in the House, accused Republicans of hypocrisy.

“House Republicans express endless love of local control of local affairs, their central party principle, except when it comes to the District of Columbia,” Norton said in a statement. “They preach the constitutional principle of federalism, yet use the big foot of the federal government to undemocratically overturn and block local D.C. policies they disagree with, solely on a political basis.”

Norton hopes the Senate won’t act, and based on what happened earlier this year, she may have nothing to worry about. If the Senate lets this opportunity expire, Congress will not be able to change D.C.’s assisted suicide law until spending negotiations begin again next year. —E.W.

Sen. James Lankford Associated Press/Photo by Manuel Balce Ceneta

FEMA for churches

Four Republican U.S. senators introduced legislation Monday to allow emergency federal funds to go to churches during natural disasters.

Harvey and Irma, hurricanes that left wide paths of destruction in Texas and Florida, respectively, showed the resilience of communities coming together for recovery efforts. Thousands of people lost their homes during the storms and many fled to houses of worship for shelter. Republican Sens. Ted Cruz and John Cornyn of Texas, Roy Blunt of Missouri, and James Lankford of Oklahoma think churches should be eligible for emergency federal grants, just like secular nonprofit organizations.

Earlier this month, three churches in Texas sued after the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) denied them access to public assistance grants, which provide nonprofit groups money to repair or replace damaged facilities.

“This policy is discriminatory and wrong,” Cruz said. “We must ensure that religious organizations are eligible for federal assistance on the same terms as other nonprofits after being damaged or destroyed during natural disasters.”

It’s unlikely the legislative effort will win support from across the aisle, but court precedent could be in the church’s favor. In June, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 7-2 in favor of a Missouri church receiving a public grant to improve its playground. The justices, including two appointed by Democratic presidents, ruled the state cannot deny the church grant money, which benefitted the broader community, simply because it is a church. —E.W.

Democrats detained for DACA protests

Police arrested three Democratic lawmakers Tuesday outside Trump Tower in New York City during a protest of the president’s decision to wind down protections for young immigrants. Reps. Luis Gutierrez of Illinois, Adriano Espaillat of New York, and Raul Grijalva of Arizona were among at least 10 people arrested for civil disobedience. Gutierrez has been one of the most vocal advocates for immigration reform on Capitol Hill and strongly criticized President Donald Trump for announcing an end to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program after six months. Gutierrez’s office released a statement after the arrest saying the lawmaker will continue to fight to protect undocumented immigrants and urged more grassroots activists to join him. The arrests come 24 hours after angry protesters shouted down House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., during a San Francisco news conference. Several DACA recipients yelled at Pelosi, forcing her to end the event. The protesters denounced Pelosi’s purported deal with Trump to enshrine the DACA program into law. — E.W.

Flynn’s financial hole

No person connected to the Trump administration has been more embattled than Michael Flynn. The former Army three-star general lasted 24 days as White House national security adviser before being forced to resign after he misled the Trump administration about his connections with Russian officials. Flynn remains at the center of multiple probes into the 2016 presidential election and any possible collusion between Russia and the Trump campaign. Flynn’s reputation has suffered and so has his pocketbook. His siblings set up a legal defense fund this week asking for donations to help pay his legal fees. “The various investigations arising out of the 2016 presidential election have placed a tremendous financial burden on our brother Mike and his family,” Joe Flynn and Barbara Redgate said in a statement. “The enormous expense of attorneys’ fees and other related expenses far exceed their ability to pay.” Flynn took to Twitter for the first time since December to thank his brother and sister for their support. —E.W.

Fake gubernatorial news

The Republican Governors Association (RGA) isn’t helping to assuage the furor over “fake news.” On July 7, the RGA quietly launched a website called The Free Telegraph, branding itself as a media organization. It quickly began posting positive RGA content and sharing articles on social media. It wasn’t until last week, when the Associated Press asked about the site, that the RGA disclosed its involvement. It’s the RGA’s job to help its 34 Republican governors get positive press, but this latest effort had the opposite effect. The RGA now faces accusations of dishonesty for masquerading as a nonpartisan news source, despite only showing Republican-friendly content. —E.W.