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U.S. Rep. Tom MacArthur's new effort to write health care legislation intended to help stabilize insurance marketplaces without repealing the Affordable Care Act has garnered the attention of the Democrats interested in replacing him in Congress.

And they aren't exactly applauding him.

Democrats Andy Kim and Katherine Hartman took turns blasting the 3rd District Republican on Thursday for once again partnering with Rep. Mark Meadows on health care reform.

The North Carolina congressman chairs the conservative House Freedom Caucus, and he was MacArthur's partner in writing a key amendment to the Republicans' Affordable Care Act repeal-and-replace legislation that helped the measure garner enough votes to advance from the House.

This time around, the two are working on legislation intended to help stabilize individual insurance markets in some parts of the country that are in danger of collapsing due to rising premiums and the exodus of insurers willing to sell individual health plans.

Details about their proposal have not been released, but MacArthur has said it includes funding for cost-sharing reduction subsidies paid to insurers to keep out-of-pocket costs such as deductibles and co-payments manageable for low- and moderate-income consumers.

The subsidies, which are separate from the ACA's tax credits awarded to consumers to help defer some of the expense of their premiums, have become the focus of the health care debate following the Senate's failure to pass an overhaul of "Obamacare."

Democrats and many Republicans have called for the subsidies to be funded and distributed, but President Donald Trump has called them a "bailout" for insurers and has threatened to withhold them.

MacArthur has said his plan would fund the subsidies and would also include provisions intended to bring down costs.

In his statement, Kim said MacArthur could not be trusted following his first foray into health care reform with Meadows.

"None of us will forget what MacArthur did by leading the charge to take away health care from millions of Americans. We can't trust anything he does after he authored one of the worst pieces of legislation that would jeopardize many lives," the Evesham resident said. "After he burned his bridges with the moderate Republicans' Tuesday Group, MacArthur is now working with the most extreme right-wing leaders who are strong supporters of Steve Bannon, refuse to condemn Trump's statements on Charlottesville, and just introduced a measure for a straight repeal of the ACA with no replacement."

Hartman, of Moorestown, said she was concerned that MacArthur would use funding for the cost-sharing reduction payments as cover to also try to weaken Affordable Care Act protections guaranteeing that insurers cover necessities such as hospitalization, prescription drugs, prenatal care, and mental illness and substance abuse treatment.

"The cost-sharing reduction payments need to be funded, with no change to essential benefits. The attempts by President Trump and congressional Republicans to hold these payments hostage is another example of putting politics over the needs of constituents," Hartman said. "This gamesmanship will negatively affect the people of our district, and I will not stand for it. We cannot play games with people's health."

Chris Russell, a consultant and spokesman for MacArthur's re-election campaign, said that MacArthur continues to show leadership on health care and that the Democrats' attacks were the equivalent of "shooting spitballs from the sidelines."

"Do Katherine Hartman and Andy Kim even know what they are talking about? Every Democrat in Congress wants cost-sharing reductions funded, which Congressman MacArthurs proposal does. Second, many Democrats have called for the most onerous Obamacare taxes to be repealed, which Congressman MacArthurs proposal also does," Russell said. "Attacking the congressman for advancing bipartisan ideas within the framework of the current law proves that Hartman and Kim dont really care about fixing health care. They are just looking for an excuse to push for a European-style, single-payer system that will bankrupt the country, destroy our growing economy, and increase taxes on every American."

The back-and-forth on the issue marks an early start to what's expected to be an active 2018 campaign for the 3rd District seat, which represents almost all of Burlington County and a large portion of neighboring Ocean County.

The district has been represented by a Democrat only once during the last century, but Democrats have become energized in the wake of MacArthur's role in writing the Republicans' health care overhaul legislation and the election ofTrump, who headlined a fundraiser for the congressman at his golf club in Bedminster, Somerset County.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has listed MacArthur's seat among its top targets in 2018 and was also critical of his renewed partnership with Meadows.

Once again, Rep. MacArthur is showing his true colors by aligning with the most extreme right-wing members of the Republican Party. The centrist Tuesday Group already kicked MacArthur out of its leadership for the MacArthur Amendment, which gutted protections for pre-existing conditions and led to the passage of the destructive Republican repeal bill. This recent scheme should finally put an end to the myth of MacArthur as moderate," said Evan Lukaske, a spokesman for the DCCC.

Russell said that MacArthur is willing to work with Republicans and Democrats to fix health care, and that voters deserve to know if Kim and Hartman are in favor of a single-payer system being pushed by far-left Democrats.

"The fact remains that the current health care system is a mess, and rising premiums are making health insurance unaffordable for tens of millions of middle-class Americans. Doing nothing and letting it collapse isn't an option. Neither is President Trump's plan to repeal Obamacare with no replacement," Russell said.

"That's why Congressman MacArthur is once again leading the fight to stabilize the markets, and ultimately pass a more patient-centered and consumer-friendly health care system that creates a strong safety net for the less fortunate, while allowing Americans to customize plans that best suit them and their families. Hes shown leadership and put forward a plan. What do Katherine Hartman and Andy Kim stand for?"

Excerpt from:
Democrat challengers attack MacArthur's new health care plan - Burlington County Times

John Delaney says hes a different kind of Democrat.

I work to pursue goals that I think the Democratic Party shares broadly, but I think about how you do that differently, Delaney says.

Delaney is a member of Congress from Maryland and the first officially declared Democratic candidate for president in 2020.

It bears reminding that the 2020 presidential election is more than three years away, and even Iowas first-in-the-nation presidential caucuses are roughly 2 years off.

Yet here was Delaney, making his way around the 2017 Iowa State Fair this past week, holding multiple media interviews and meeting with people interested in his campaign over the span of a couple of days in Des Moines.

The 54-year-old Delaney said he is not a typical Democrat because he believes the best government work is done when both major political parties work together, and that he has a different view on economic issues because of his experience as an entrepreneur.

Assuming he stays in the race for the long haul --- during the interview he assured he would --- Delaney will be among what almost assuredly will be a large crowd of Democratic candidates. (CNN political analyst Chris Cillizza recently estimated more than 20 possibilities --- and that list did not include Delaney.) So Delaney will need a message that differentiates himself from the crowd.

A key element of Delaneys message is that he thinks federal officials are, as he said it, having the wrong conversation. He said too much political debate is about re-litigating battles of the past, and not enough about looking toward the future.

And a critical piece of that forward-looking debate, Delaney said, is technology and the disruption it will have on the global workforce.

Technology, automation, global interconnections, these are changing everything, Delaney said. These things are going to have profound effects over the next 20 or 30 years, and theyre going to create large-scale opportunities and challenges, and were doing nothing to prepare our country and our citizens.

Delaney said the federal government should be doing more to prepare for those profound effects by creating a more competitive and entrepreneurial business climate, creating a better educated and more well-trained workforce, investing in communities, and make smarter investments of government resources to create a healthier budget and environment.

That, to me, is a blueprint for the future, Delaney said.

Delaney founded two companies: a finance company for health care providers and a commercial lender. Both went public within three years of their founding, according to Delaneys biography.

He was first elected to Congress in 2012 and serves on the financial services committee.

Delaney said his business background gives him a different economic perspective that is different that some Democrats, that he does not view the private sector as the enemy.

And that message, Delaney said, is what will help Democrats regain voters they lost in 2016 --- including in Iowa, which went twice for former President Barack Obama but flipped for Trump.

I dont think its the policy goals of the Democratic Party are wrong. But I definitely think that we are not talking to people about what they care most about. We tend to talk to people about what we care most about. And those are very different things, Delaney said.

Obviously what most people care about is their job and the economy in their local community. Because really at the end of the day everything flows from that: a persons sense of dignity, their ability to raise a family, their ability to support their kids, the ability to make sure the community has the resources it needs so its vital and vibrant. And Democrats arent talking enough about that.

As for his early entry into the race, Delaney said part of the reason is his desire to be straight with voters, who he thinks are tired of all the b.s. in politics.

We all know there are a lot of people running for president right now, Delaney said. Theyre just not saying it.

Erin Murphy covers Iowa politics and state government for Lee Enterprises. His email address is erin.murphy@lee.net.

More here:
Murphy: A 'different' Democrat comes to Iowa - Mason City Globe Gazette

Following Donald Trumps equivocating of white supremacists and those who oppose them in the wake of violent clashes in Charlottesville, Virginia, another Democrat has signaled his intention to file articles of impeachment against him in the House of Representatives. Rep. Steve Cohen of Tennessee, a ranking member of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution and Civil Justice, sent out a press release Thursday announcing his intention to begin the impeachment process against the president for his widely condemned reaction.

Related: Impeaching Trump may not be necessary to remove him from the White House

I believe the president should be impeached and removed from office, Cohen said in the release. Instead ofunequivocally condemning hateful actions by neo-Nazis, white nationalists and Klansmen following a national tragedy, the president said there were very fine people on both sides. There are no good Nazis. There are no good Klansmen.

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One person, Heather Heyer, died in Charlottesville on Saturday after a white supremacist allegedly drove his car into a crowd of counterprotesters. But in an impromptu press conference Tuesday, Trump said there were very fine people among a group protesting the removal of a Confederate-era statue, despite videos showing them chanting anti-Semitic and racist slogans.

President Trump has failed the presidential test of moral leadership, Cohen added. No moral president would ever shy away from outright condemning hate, intolerance and bigotry. No moral president would ever question the values of Americans protesting in opposition of such actions, one of whom was murdered by one of the white nationalists.

President Donald Trump walks across the South Lawn after arriving via Marine One at the White House in Washington, D.C., on August 14. Jonathan Ernst/Reuters

Cohen went on to detail other potentially impeachable actions Trump has committed, claiming he had no choice but to begin the process to remove the president from the White House.

Not only has he potentially obstructed justice and potentially violated the Constitutions Foreign Emoluments Clause, but he has also shown that he is incapable or unwilling to protect Americans from enemies, foreign and domestic. Neo-Nazis and the KKK are domestic terrorists, he said. It is morally and legally incumbent upon me, based on my oath of office, to introduce articles of impeachment.

It is not the first time articles of impeachment have been introduced in the House. Last month, another Democrat, Rep. Brad Sherman, of California, introduced his own articles, accusing Trump of obstruction of justice. The move followed Trumps firing of FBI Director James Comey, who was leading an investigation into possible collusion between Trumps campaign and Russia.

However, any hopes of impeaching Trump at this stage remains largely a pipe dream for Democrats. A majority vote in the House of Representatives and a two-thirds majority in the Senate is required to remove the president. Republicans currently have control of both houses.

More here:
Trump Impeachment Process Begins as Democrat States President 'Failed Test of Moral Leadership' - Newsweek

New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu on Thursday urged his counterparts around the country to take down the Confederate statues, and took a veiled shot at Trump by citing a lack of national leadership on this issue that mayors should step up to fill.

"Once again, mayors have been asked to fill a void of national leadership," wrote Landrieu, a Democrat and president of the U.S. Conference of Mayors, in a letter released Thursday. "I hope our combined efforts have put us on a path toward equity and reconciliation. But no matter how America navigates these troubled times, the courage and conviction of our cities will ultimately chart our course."

While Landrieu's letter never named Trump, it's a direct shot at the president, who said Thursday he opposes the removal of the statues. The president also drew broad criticism for waffling on issuing explicit condemnations of the white nationalists who rallied in Charlottesville, Va., and emphasizing that counter-protesters also committed acts of violence.

"You had some very bad people in that group," Trump said Tuesday. "You also had some very fine people on both sides."

White nationalists gathered Friday and Saturday in Charlottesville to protest the removal of a statue of Robert E. Lee. They celebrated Nazism and chanted Friday evening that "Jews will not replace us." That display drew counter-protesters affiliated with Antifa, a group of anarchist leftists who clashed with the original rallygoers and assaulted reporters documenting the scene. The violence turned deadly when someone drove a vehicle into a crowd of Antifa members, killing one and injuring 19 others; police say the driver was one of the white nationalists.

Landrieu made clear that he aspires to be a national leader on this issue. "I pledge to you today the full resources of the U.S. Conference of Mayors to help you unite your community," he said. "As president of this conference, I will commit to do everything we can to stand up to those who seek to divide us and perpetuate hate. If you choose to do the same in your city, we will stand with you."

He said that "the Confederacy's shameful legacy will be with us, whether we memorialize it in marble or not," but argued that "there is a difference between remembrance of history and reverence for it." He also asked mayors to help guide their cities through the issue.

"I encourage each of you to lead your community through a conversation on race and equity," Landrieu wrote. "This process can be painful, and I know it may feel like you're choosing the path of most resistance. But your city, and our entire union, will be stronger for it."

Landrieu ordered the removal of Confederate monuments from New Orleans in May, providing opponents of such statues with one of their biggest successes in recent years. His subsequent defense of that decision stoked speculation that he could be a dark-horse presidential candidate in 2020.

Read more:
Democrat mayor claims 'void of national leadership' under Trump - Washington Examiner

Associated Press August 17, 2017 - 4:55 PM

MADISON, Wis. The Latest on the Wisconsin state Assembly debate of the $3 billion Foxconn bill (all times local):

4:50 p.m.

A $3 billion tax break bill for Taiwan-based electronics giant Foxconn Technology Group is poised to pass the Wisconsin Assembly on a bipartisan vote.

Democratic state Rep. Cory Mason said during debate Thursday that he intends to vote for the bill. He is the first Democrat to publicly say he will back the measure that is being championed by Gov. Scott Walker and fellow Republicans.

Most Democrats have assailed the measure, saying it's a corporate welfare giveaway that weakens environmental standards and doesn't have enough protections for workers.

The plant that Foxconn said could employ up to 13,000 people would be located near Racine, where Mason is running for mayor.

He says the measure is not perfect, but the prospect of thousands of jobs is too good to pass up.

___

12:30 p.m.

Democrats in the Wisconsin state Assembly are arguing that a vote on $3 billion in tax breaks for Taiwan-based Foxconn Technology Group should be delayed until the bill can be improved.

Democratic Assembly Leader Peter Barca argued Thursday that changes are necessary to ensure the environment and workers are protected and Wisconsin businesses will be involved in construction of the $10 billion campus where television display panels are to be manufactured.

Republican Assembly Speaker Robin Vos says it is important for the proposal to pass with bipartisan support. He says the project that could employ up to 13,000 people will transform the state's economy.

Republicans control the Assembly 64 to 35.

___

11:15 a.m.

Wisconsin Republicans say they are not moving too quickly on a bill that would extend up to $3 billion in tax breaks to Taiwan-based electronics giant Foxconn Technology Group to locate a massive $10 billion factory in the state.

The state Assembly scheduled a vote on the measure Thursday, just three weeks after it was introduced. Assembly jobs and economy committee chairman Rep. Adam Neylon says the bill has been improved to include changes Democrats wanted, including $20 million for job training and improved environmental regulations.

Republican Assembly Speaker Robin Vos predicted the bill would pass on a bipartisan vote. Many minority Democrats have been outspoken against the measure.

The bill must also pass the Senate and be signed by Gov. Scott Walker before becoming law.

___

12:06 a.m.

The Wisconsin Assembly plans to approve a $3 billion tax break bill for Taiwan-based Foxconn Technology Group to build a new display panel factory in the state.

The incentive package up for a vote Thursday would be the largest in state history and the biggest to a foreign company in U.S. history. Democratic critics have said the state is giving away too much, while Republican backers, including Gov. Scott Walker, say it's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

A deal signed by Walker and Foxconn officials call for the electronics giant to invest $10 billion in the state and hire up to 13,000 people at the massive plant. Construction would begin in 2020.

Critics say they worry about environmental regulations waived under the bill and the cost of the tax breaks.

Go here to read the rest:
The Latest: At least 1 Wisconsin Democrat backs Foxconn - Minneapolis Star Tribune