While you have been watching congressional hearings or enjoying summer with your family, Congress and the president have been working, mostly against your interests. Here are some issues, along with polling reflecting your views on the same issues, that have kept the Republican Congress and President Donald Trump busy at work.

Republicans in the House passed a healthcare reform bill that they proudly proclaim will dis-enroll up to 24 million Americans from their healthcare. The bill would also curtail Medicaid, eject thousands from nursing homes, increase insurance costs to seniors and end price protections for pre-existing conditions. In polling, fully 17 percent of Americans think this is a great idea. That is correct – the bill House Republicans love only has the support of 17 percent of Americans. Does Congress care? Of course not, because the ultimate plan is to use the nearly $1 trillion in savings to provide tax cuts for the richest Americans. And who would not love that?

Republicans are also working on the deconstruction of Dodd-Frank, the laws that require banks to hold enough reserve funds to withstand severe economic downturns like that of 2007-08. Yes, a decade later Republicans feel these onerous regulations will inhibit banks from investing in new forms of worthless products, other than the built-to-fail home loans of earlier excess. This gives consumers yet another chance to bail out rich bankers in the future.

And while Republicans have yet to build out the details, they have plans for new and huge tax cuts, though not so much for you, that will expand the deficit and debt, increase the income disparity gap and underfund things like student loans, food banks and pre-school meals. How could you not love such a plan?

The president still plans to build a wall on our southern border, an idea two thirds of Americans oppose, but at a cost of over $20 billion, who needs roads and bridges?

And Republicans are determined to end funding to Planned Parenthood even though 66 percent of Americans think it is a bad idea to close up needed healthcare for millions of Americans. But, since 3 percent of Planned Parenthood’s program provides abortion services, the other 97 percent of services are apparently tainted by the relationship.

60 percent of Americans think the President’s decision to exit the Paris Accords, and end our global leadership in fighting climate change, was a terrible idea.

58 percent of Americans would increase the minimum wage, but the president and Republicans disagree because paying workers fair wages discourages business.

Only 36 percent of Americans think the President’s plan of encouraging coal production is connected to reality. Most believe the opposite, replacing fossil fuel with renewable energy, is a smarter approach.

If you are following the investigation of Russia and any possible collusion with the Trump campaign, the President is now under investigation for obstruction of justice. Apparently, firing the chief investigator, and then stating in front of TV cameras that you fired him for investigating you, raises the idea of obstruction in the minds of the new chief investigator.

Likewise, some senators took exception to Dan Coats, Trump’s director of national intelligence, and Admiral Mike Rogers, director of the National Security Agency, for refusing to answer questions posed by the oversight committee. The two said they simply did not feel comfortable talking about conversations with the president.

The same Senate committee members reacted with equal anger this week, when Attorney General Jeff Sessions refused to answer questions or forgot everything else he knew or experienced about the Russian connections. Sessions did not know if he met with Russians, but was absolutely certain that the Russians he likely may not have met with never talked about collusion with the Trump campaign.

Why does it feel like that swamp water is rising, not falling?

 

Jim Crawford is a retired educator and political enthusiast living here in the Tri-State.