With the help of Sen. John McCain, who returned with his fresh surgical scars, Sen. Mitch McConnell and Sen. John Cornyn twisted enough arms to start debate on the Republican bill to kill a critical part of the social safety net.
They’re voting to debate a bill that they haven’t seen. You can’t really pretend that you’re putting country above party when you’re taking it all on faith. And every single one of them knows that all the options — repeal and replace, repeal and replace with bribes, or just damn repeal and go home — all the possibilities will ruin millions of people.
And John McCain. Jeeze. For all his big talk about independence, McCain levers himself out of his bed and goes to DC to cast yet another party-line vote. All while swearing he doesn’t like the bill.
Which he still hasn’t seen. Nice work there there, Johnny. Love that Maverick’y thing.
Update: I finally heard McCain’s speech. His words are stirring. He says what we all know. “It’s better than nothing,”? It was really an excellent speech. McCain talks a good game.
And yet, McCain crossed the country to make this specific, party-line vote. Why, if his goal is ‘regular order’, would he vote to allow a bill that violates all of that? Maybe it sounds churlish of me, I’m withholding judgment until I see how McCain votes. His words fly so high, but his actions are those of a poser. Pretty as it all sounds, I’m not convinced.
