Undocumented Immigrants Without Health Care Were Some Of The Essential Workers Felled By Covid
Republicans repeated their campaign talking point Thursday night that Democrats want to give health care to immigrants without legal status on Thursday night. But the pandemic has shown some of the consequences of high uninsured rates among people without legal status in the U.S.
Early in the pandemic, meat plants slowed their production and Americans feared meat shortages as workers became ill. Some died.
There are an estimated 10.5 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S. The rates of uninsured for health care are high for the population. Not all plant workers are undocumented but the agricultural industry and others are known to rely on undocumented workers and immigrants with legal status.
Undocumented workers are not eligible for health care coverage under the Affordable Care Act, Medicaid or Medicare and most do not have health care coverage through their employers, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation.
Many forgo health care to avoid exposing their undocumented status or affecting future chances for citizenship. Some states provide health coverage with state funding regardless of status, but others deny health care even to pregnant women.
Some immigrants get health care through non-profit community clinics, but the clinics usually only provide preventive and primary care. Often undocumented immigrants will only seek care when the situation is dire at more costly emergency rooms.
Ivanka Says Trumps Results Speak For Themselves And The Internet Went To Town
Ivanka Trump noted in her speech that while some voters may not be too keen on her fathers tweets, the results speak for themselves.
Twitter lit up in response.
Needless to say, some felt the results did speak for themselves. But not in a good way.
Case in point: Ivanka Trump highlighting her fathers actions on the coronavirus and the shutting down parts of the economy to combat the pandemic that has killed over 180,000 people in the U.S.
But as some pointed out, Trump was unable to lead a response that curtailed the outbreak while things were shut down, leaving the disease raging well into the summer months.
@IvankaTrump: The results speak for themselves.
Mcconnell Talks Up His Blocking Of Democratic Legislation
Mitch McConnell pitched Republican control of the Senate as a firewall against House Democrats legislative aims in a speech before the Republican National Convention on Thursday.
McConnell, who has embraced himself as the grim reaper of Democratic legislation, blocking one Democratic initiative after another since they regained control of the House in early 2019, said he is immensely proud of the work the Republican Senate has done.
We are the firewall against Nancy Pelosis agenda, he said. Like President Trump, we wont be bullied by a liberal media intent on destroying Americas institutions. We will stand our post on behalf of the millions of Americans whose stories arent told in todays newspapers. Whose struggles are just as real. We will continue to support American families as we defeat the coronavirus and return our economy to the envy of the world.
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Here Are President Trump’s Past And Present Views On How Best To Fix Social Security
In case you haven’t heard, America’s most important social program, Social Security, is in a bit of trouble. A number of ongoing demographic changes have Social Security on track to completely exhaust its $2.9 trillion in asset reserves by 2035. Should this happen, Social Security wouldn’t be bankrupt, but it would mean sweeping benefit cuts to then-current and future retired workers of up to 23%.
Social Security needs a fix, and it’s lawmakers on Capitol Hill who will have to deliver that resolution. That’s why it’s more important now than ever to know where the leading 2020 presidential candidates stand on Social Security. Today, we’ll take a closer look at incumbent Republican Donald Trump’s viewpoints on Social Security.
Image source: Getty Images.
President Trumps Record On Social Security
In 2016, the president distinguished himself from other Republicans by promising to leave Social Security alone. Over the past four years, hes pretty much done just that.
There have been no Bush-like privatization plans from the Trump administration, no Simpson/Bowles-inspired murmings over cutting benefits or raising the full retirement age. Theres been no real plan to do much of anything. The Biden campaign ad is as close as theres been to a controversy, and even that misrepresents the presidents aims.
Should Trump win in November you can expect more of the same.
I haven’t seen anything discussed on Social Security reform, Andrew Biggs, a research fellow at the conservative-leaning think tank AEI told Forbes Advisor. The president has argued against any Social Security benefit cuts but hasn’t waded into how Social Security’s long-term funding should be secured.
While this should assuage any fears about changes to the Social Security status quo and soothe soon-to-be retirees worried about cuts to their monthly checks, its less than ideal that the Trump administration has no plans to shore up Social Securitys long-term finances.
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Pat Lynch: The Democrats Have Walked Away From Us
The Democrats have walked away from us. They have walked away from police officers and they’ve walked away from the innocent people we protect, Lynch said. Democratic politicians have surrendered our streets and our institutions. The loudest voices have taken control, and our so-called leaders are scrambling to catch up with them.
Its worth noting that, according to The New York Times, major crimes have not risen in NYC and the papers analysis of city data shows that the recent spike in shootings is largely because of the number of arrests for gun crimes has sharply decreased.
Trump Is Lying His Budget Proposal Does Cut Social Security
Donald Trump lies about everything from the size of his inauguration crowds to his promise to provide great health care for a fraction of the price to every person in America. So, its no surprise that Trump is lying when his Administration says his just-released budget proposal doesnt cut Social Security. In fact, it cuts billions from that vital program.
There is good reason that he is covering up the truth. The truth is a complete contradiction of his repeated campaign promise not to cut Social Security. He bragged that his refusal to cut Social Security differentiated him from his Republican Primary rivals, who had their knives at the ready. His voters tend to be older and more rural. They will be hit the hardest by his duplicity.
Trumps Administration is seeking to cover up the breaking of this key promise by claiming that Social Security disability insurance, which the budget cuts, is not really Social Security, or, at least, not an important part of Social Security protection though it has been part of working families earned Social Security benefits for more than six decades and is the nations most important protection for working families hit with work-ending disabilities!
His voters tend to be older and more rural. They will be hit the hardest by his duplicity.
Dont believe the lie that the cuts to Social Security disability insurance are simply designed to help people return to work.
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‘i Am Free’: Alice Marie Johnson Thanks Trump For Commuting Her Sentence At The Rnc
Johnson had been in federal lockup for more than 21 years after being found guilty in connection to a drug trafficking conspiracy, and she would likely have died behind bars without the president’s clemency. She was one of the thousands of Americans serving life sentences for nonviolent offenses, according to a 2013 report by the American Civil Liberties Union, the vast majority of whom are there on drug crimes.
Since her sentence was commuted by Trump in June 2018, she has consistently thanked Kardashian West and the president for her release and Trump has also used her story as he advocates from criminal justice reform. In her speech on Thursday, she did explicitly not urge Americans to re-elect the president, but praised and thanked him for his actions on criminal justice.
“I pray that you will not just hear this message, but that you will be inspired by my story and your compassion will lead you to take action for those who are forgotten. That’s what our president, Donald Trump did for me,” she said. “And for that, I will be forever grateful. God bless you. God bless President Trump, and God bless America.”
Trump Has Tossed Around A Number Of Surprising Solutions
Of course, it’s also important to understand that Trump’s views on Social Security have changed considerably over time, and he has, on occasion, tossed around a number of ideas that you may find surprising.
Back in 2000, in his book The America We Deserve, Trump proposed the idea of a one-time 14.25% tax on individuals with a net worth of more than $10 million. In Trump’s view, this one-time tax would have allowed the federal government to collect enough revenue to pay off its national debt , saving it $200 billion annually on interest payments. Trump proposed taking $100 billion of this $200 billion in annual savings and adding it to the Social Security program over a 10-year time frame.
Donald Trump has also loosely tossed around the idea of means-testing for benefits. Means-testing would partially reduce or eliminate Social Security benefits once an individual or couple crosses above a preset earnings threshold. Since Social Security was designed to predominantly protect low-income workers during retirement, such a move would ensure that the rich aren’t receiving payments they don’t need.
Trump even once offered up the idea of partially privatizing Social Security — a view he now steers clear of. In The America We Deserve, Trump suggests that workers have the option of utilizing personal accounts to invest in stocks, bonds, diversified mutual funds, and bonds funds.
The point being that Trump may be more open to a middle-ground solution than most folks realize.
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Trump Accepts Nomination For President
President Trump on Thursday accepted the Republican nomination for president.
“My fellow Americans, tonight, with a heart full of gratitude and boundless optimism, I profoundly accept this nomination for president of the United States,” he said, deviating from prepared remarks that said “proudly accept.”
Things To Watch For On Night 4 Of The Rnc
Shannon Pettypiece
President Trump has had nearly four years in office to sell his performance to the American people. So far, polls suggest he has yet to make the sale: A majority of Americans disapprove of the job he’s done, and he has consistently trailed Joe Biden in general election surveys this year.
So what can he say on the final night of the Republican National Convention to change those attitudes and convince Americans he deserves four more years in office? Republican strategists say they are looking for him to give a vision of what he would do in a second term an area he has struggled to define and how that would contrast with a Biden presidency.
Whatever message Trump delivers on the final night of the gathering, he will be competing for attention with a Category 4 hurricane that made landfall Thursday morning.
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Fact Check: Ivanka Trump Mischaracterizes Father’s Use Of Defense Production Act
Ivanka Trump, in her Thursday night RNC speech, claimed that her father rapidly mobilized the full force of government and the private sector to produce ventilators within weeks.
This is a substantial mischaracterization of what occurred. Trump did mobilize the private sector within weeks, but given how quickly the coronavirus was spreading early in the year, health officials and experts said it was still too long a period for Trump to take action and that doing so sooner could have saved lives.
Giuliani Calls On Trump To Make Our Nation Safe Again
Rudy Giuliani delivered a forceful speech condemning violence in American cities and ended his speech by calling on Trump to “make our nation safe again” a puzzling pitch for a president who has led the country during such unrest.
Giuliani also slammed Joe Biden, calling him a Trojan Horse with Bernie, AOC, Pelosi, Black Lives Matter and his partys entire left wing hidden inside his body just waiting to execute their pro-criminal, anti-police policies.
It is clear that a vote for Biden and the Democrats creates the risk that you will bring this lawlessness to your city, town or suburb, he said. It can come to where you live.
While railing against the Black Lives Matter group, Giuliani paid tribute to victims of violence and said that “all Black Lives Matter” to Republicans.
In conclusion, Giuliani said, Mr. President, make our nation safe again.”
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Sen Harris: Rnc Was Designed To ‘soothe Donald Trump’s Ego’
Harris spoke hours before President Trump is set to formally accept his party’s nomination for re-election at the final night of the Republican National Convention, pre-emptively criticizing the president for his response to the coronavirus pandemic.
Instead of rising to meet the most difficult moment of his presidency, he froze. He was scared. He was petty and vindictive, Harris said.
Fact Check: Trump Claims Biden Wants To ‘close All Charter Schools’ That’s False
“Biden also vowed to oppose school choice and close all charter schools, ripping away the ladder of opportunity for Black and Hispanic children,” Trump claimed on Tuesday night.
This is false. The Biden campaign does not oppose charter schools, though they’ve advocated against for-profit charter schools and supported different regulations and oversight of the schools.
And while “school choice” is a buzzy word, it can means different things to different people. Trump supports letting students take federal funds to private schools, something Joe Biden and many Democrats oppose, instead supporting allowing families to make choices within publicly-funded school districts.
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Former Democrat Jeff Van Drew Explains Why He Switched To Gop
Meanwhile, scores of former Republican administration officials have endorsed Bidens campaign, including dozens of former George W. Bush staffers who announced their intent to back Biden this week.
Theres also a small group of former Trump administration officials who worked in the Department of Homeland Security who have chosen to back Biden.
But Van Drews speech provides Trump a lane to show the opposite effect of his presidency on some Democrats. Trump made a big show of Van Drew switching parties during the impeachment process and hosted him at the White House for a meeting.
Fact Check: Ivanka Trump Says Trump’s Actions Have Cut Drug Prices But Drug Prices Have Gone Up
Recently, he took dramatic action cut the cost of prescription drugs despite fielding angry calls from the CEOs of every major pharmaceutical company, the president’s daughter Ivanka Trump said Thursday night during her primetime address. Now, when we see an attack ad paid for by Big Pharma, my dad smiles and says to me, You know were doing something really right if theyre hitting us so hard.
This is misleading. Drug prices have risen during Trumps administration, and gone up steadily during the pandemic. And while Trump has talked up taking decisive action, his orders remain secret.
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Trump Usually Includes New Material In Major Speeches Not Tonight
President Trump spoke for roughly 70 minutes on Thursday, one of the longest convention speeches in modern history.
But the speech contained almost nothing that Trump hasnt already said, falling back on lines one would expect to hear in any standard fair Trump stump speech or even a coronavirus briefing: the economy is doing great, Democrats are radicals, America is winning.
The speech didnt have one theme it was built around but rather contained an extensive and often repetitive review of Trumps actions in office and wide-ranging criticisms of Joe Biden. Trump’s address was roughly triple the length of Bidens convention speech.
The president is known to insert new material into his speeches on the trail. It just wasnt the case in one of the biggest speeches of his presidency.
Republicans Still Think Trump Will Cut Social Security And Medicare
WASHINGTON Donald Trump said repeatedly on the campaign trail that he would not cut Social Security or Medicare, and in his first budget as president, he is sticking to that promise. But congressional Republicans dont believe Trump will stand by his pledge forever in fact, theyre counting on him to break it.
At some point were going to have to get serious about addressing entitlements, thats the biggest part of the budget, Rep. James Comer told The Huffington Post Wednesday. We cant continue to kick the can down the road on entitlements.
Comer noted that he wanted to give Trump some deference he won my district by over 50 points but he said it was Congress responsibility to address social insurance spending and that he looked forward to seeing what Trump proposes in the future.
That was a common refrain from more than a dozen House Republicans HuffPost talked to on Wednesday. What I heard Mick Mulvaney say this week is were doing our skinny budget first and were not touching those things in our skinny budget, said senior Budget Committee member Rob Woodall , who is also the former Republican Study Committee Budget and Spending Task Force Chairman.
Its a concern that I havent heard a plan yet from the administration to deal with our overall spending and debt problem, said Rep. Justin Amash , a Freedom Caucus member, who has proven more willing than many Republicans to criticize Trump.
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