U.S. Politics

[Rick Plant]

New Florida teacher training aims to indoctrinate educators with conservative ideology

Alex Wagner travels to Florida to learn about a new civics training for teachers, encouraged by Governor Ron DeSantis, that emphasizes Christian nationalist values and an "originalist" interpretation of the U.S. Constitution.

Watch in link:

https://www.msnbc.com/alex-wagner-tonight/watch/new-florida-teacher-training-aims-to-indoctrinate-educators-with-conservative-ideology-146432581889

[Rick Plant]

STRONG majority of Americans support the Inflation Reduction Act.

Every single Republican in Congress voted no—who are they working for?


New POLITICO/Morning Consult poll:

STRONG public support for Inflation Reduction Act

-Cap Drug Rx Price Increase: +63
-Medicare Negotiation: +60
-Limit Annual Out-of-Pocket for Drugs: +57
-Clean Energy Manufacturing: +31
-Clean Energy Programs: +21

https://politico.com/f/?id=00000182-ab36-dd90-a7a2-fb76b7be0000

[Rick Plant]

President Biden @POTUS

Eighty-three percent of Americans support Medicare negotiating lower drug prices.
 
After three decades of attempts, we finally got it done.

Under the Inflation Reduction Act, seniors will pay less on their prescription drugs.

Folks on Medicare won't pay more than $2,000 a year on their prescriptions.

That’s a godsend for so many families.

For so many Americans, the cost of prescription drugs can be the difference between hope and fear. Life and death.

We are making prescriptions more affordable in this country and getting folks suffering from illnesses the medicine they need and the dignity they deserve.



https://twitter.com/POTUS/status/1560035165862232065

[Rick Plant]

'Dictatorial' Ron DeSantis blasted over 'legally suspect' state attorney suspension



On August 4th, 2022, Florida's Republican Governor Ron DeSantis suspended State Attorney Andrew Warren – a twice-elected Democrat from Tampa's Hillsborough County – after Warren announced that he would not enforce the Sunshine State's unconstitutional restrictions on reproductive freedom, which include a 15-week abortion ban with no exceptions for rape or incest as well as the criminalization of gender-affirming care.

DeSantis accused Warren of "neglect of duty" and "incompetence" and stated for him "to take a position that you have veto powers over the laws of the state is untenable."

Warren responded that DeSantis is "trying to overthrow democracy here in Hillsborough County."

Yet the fight is just beginning. On Wednesday morning, Warren filed a lawsuit in the District Court for the Northern District of Florida challenging his dismissal. It alleges that DeSantis overstepped his executive authority.

"The Florida Constitution sets very limited parameters under which a governor can suspend an elected official and what's happening here is, he's trying to overturn a free and fair election," Warren told CNN of DeSantis. "He's trying to throw out the votes of hundreds of thousands of Floridians. And he's trying to substitute his judgment for that of the voters who elected me."

CNN pointed out that "under Florida law, a governor can remove 'any county officer' for malfeasance, misfeasance, neglect of duty, drunkenness, incompetence, permanent inability to perform official duties, or commission of a felony." But Warren's lawyers argued in their complaint that "the First Amendment still applies even though DeSantis is the Governor of Florida and that the Constitution of the State of Florida means what the courts say it means, not whatever DeSantis needs it to mean to silence his critics, promote his loyalists, and subvert the will of the voters."

A few hours after Warren's appearance on CNN, the South Florida Sun Sentinel Editorial Board blasted DeSantis for his "legally suspect" decision.

"DeSantis is driven by partisanship and a zeal to use the powers of his office to silence critics — and wants voters to give him four more years in November so he can continue to run roughshod over his critics. Who’s next?" the editors wrote.

"What’s important to know about the suspension of Warren is that the prosecutor is a Democrat who has been vocal in his opposition to Florida’s 15-week abortion ban, with no exception for rape or incest, passed earlier this year by the Legislature and signed into law by DeSantis. A circuit judge struck down the Florida law as unconstitutional and the state is appealing," they explained. "With the abortion law in legal limbo, Warren said in June that he would not prosecute people for providing or seeking abortions, and cited 'well-settled discretion' of prosecutors. He did that in a signed pledge through a national group, Just and Fair Prosecution, along with nearly 100 other prosecutors across the country. The only other Florida prosecutor who signed was State Attorney Monique Worrell of the Orange and Osceola County circuit."

The Board noted that "the fatal legal flaw in the suspension order is that Warren was punished not for any action taken or not taken, but because of public statements he has made. DeSantis is governor, not the thought police. 'At no time while in office,' Warren’s lawsuit states, 'has Warren ever been referred a case involving a request to prosecute abortion-related crimes,'" adding that policy disagreement "is not sufficient cause to suspend Warren from office and invalidate the results of two countywide elections in Florida’s fourth-largest county."

DeSantis, the paper continued, "overreached. He should have waited at least until Warren decided an abortion case, though the law is clear that he has prosecutorial discretion. DeSantis could have issued an order, transferring all abortion cases to another state attorney as former Gov. Rick Scott did when former Orlando prosecutor Aramis Ayala declared her opposition to seeking the death penalty. Suspension, and sending an armed deputy to escort Warren from his office, is an extreme act that reeks of vengeance and partisanship."

The battle between Warren and DeSantis will be formidable, as both men are skilled in making their case. Warren, however, holds one key advantage.

The Sun Sentinel recalled that "as a candidate for governor four years ago, DeSantis got 234,835 votes in Democrat-leaning Hillsborough County, losing the county to rival Andrew Gillum. Two years ago, Warren proved much more popular with county voters, getting 369,129 votes despite being farther down the ballot. The 2020 election was a much higher-turnout presidential race, but the numbers speak for themselves."

Therefore, the Editorial Board posited in its conclusion, "who speaks more clearly for most of Greater Tampa — DeSantis or Warren?"

Read More Here:

https://www.cnn.com/2022/08/17/politics/florida-state-attorney-challenge-suspension-desantis-cnntv/index.html

[Rick Plant]

New House Polls:

Incumbent House Republicans are struggling:

PA-10 Daniels (D) 44 Perry (R) 41
NE-2 Vargas (D) 46 Bacon (R) 47
CA-22 Salas (D) 43 Valadao (R) 35
TX-34 Gonzalez (D) 47 Flores (R) 43
FL-27 Taddeo (D) 34 Salazar (R) 39
IA-3 Mathis (D) 44 Hinson (R) 44
NM-2 Vasquez (D) 45 Herrell (R) 44

[Rick Plant]

From health-care subsidies to $10,000 in discounts and rebates, 3 ways the Inflation Reduction Act could save you money



On Tuesday, President Joe Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act into law. The sweeping $739 billion spending package — a reduced version of the administration's Build Back Better plan — aims to reduce health-care costs, shrink the deficit and combat climate change. 

Experts are uncertain that the bill will live up to its name by curbing rising prices for American consumers. And much of the legislation's headline provisions, such as a 15% minimum corporate tax on companies earning more than $1 billion per year and a new excise tax on companies buying back shares of their own stock, are unlikely to move the needle on the finances of everyday Americans.

But some of the bill's less-heralded provisions could indeed have a big impact on your wallet, such as saving you up to $10,000 in discounts and tax rebates. Here are three ways the bill could affect your money.

1. Extensions of expanded health-care subsidies

The bill allows households receiving help paying for health insurance through the public marketplace to continue to qualify for more generous subsidies that were set to expire at the end of the year. The new bill extends the tax breaks on health insurance through the end of 2025.

That's a huge deal for millions of Americans whose premiums are staying put.

"Without the extension, the vast majority of the 13 million people who get subsidies … would see premium payments rise," Krutika Amin, associate director for the Kaiser Family Foundation's Affordable Care Act program, told CNBC before the bill's passage.

For those who buy coverage through healthcare.gov or their state's exchange — typically the self-employed, people who can't get workplace insurance or people who don't qualify for Medicare or Medicaid — the subsidy extension represents significant savings.

Depending on their income, some enrollees could have seen their monthly premiums rise by more than 50%, said Amin.

2. Lower drug prices for Medicare recipients

If you're enrolled in Medicare, you may see reductions in what you pay for certain prescription drugs in the next few years.

Under the new legislation, the Department of Health and Human Services will be able to negotiate prices for some of the most expensive drugs covered under Medicare Part B (which covers drugs administered by health-care providers) and Part D (which covers drugs from retail pharmacies).

The negotiations will take some time. The first batch of Part D drugs will come with negotiated prices starting in 2026. This will include the drugs that Medicare patients spend the most money on, many of which have been on the market for years without generic competition.

Medicare negotiations could cut the prices seniors pay for those drugs by 25% in 2026 and beyond, according to Bank of America analysts, who outlined 25 drugs they think could be targeted under the program based on 2020 spending.

3. Climate tax breaks and rebates

In an effort to fight climate change, the new law includes enticements for consumers to add energy-efficient upgrades to their homes.

Depending on your income, you can receive upfront discounts or tax rebates on home energy projects such as heat pumps, rooftop solar panels or basic weatherization. All told, you may qualify for up to $10,000 in tax breaks and rebates, according to an analysis from CNBC.

These incentives may also have a trickle-down effect on what you pay for utilities. Between home energy improvements and cheaper commodity prices, the average U.S. household could net roughly $170 to $220 in annual savings, according to an estimate from nonprofit research firm Resources for the Future.

The bill also extends and adjusts an existing tax credit on the purchase of "clean" vehicles such as electric cars, plug-in hybrids and cars that run on hydrogen fuel cells. The credit, worth up to $7,500 on the purchase of new vehicles, is available through 2032.

You won't qualify, however, if your income or the price of the vehicle you wish to purchase exceed certain thresholds.

Similar rules apply for a credit — worth up to $4,000 — on the purchase of used "clean" vehicles.

For a breakdown of what energy-efficiency tax rebates and discounts you qualify for, check out this calculator from electrification nonprofit Rewiring America.

https://www.cnbc.com/2022/08/17/inflation-reduction-act-how-the-bill-could-save-you-money.html

[Rick Plant]

Arizona Senate Poll:

Mark Kelly (D) 50%
Blake Masters (R) 42%

Even Fox News polls have Democrats ahead in the polls in key Senate races.