#this the first time ive seen bill and lisa

[samirafms]

[ sahar luna, cis female , she/her ] have you seen SAMIRA  FARAS lately ? yeah, i heard they're 22 years old and a SOCIALITE now in charleston city. i mean, i don’t know if it’s their GEMINI vibes or that they’re -MANIPULATIVE and -SECRETIVE but also +FLEXIBLE and +CUNNING, but they remind me of MONEY by LISA. here’s to hoping they don’t cause too much trouble around here. (J, 21, she/her, gmt +3 )

hellooooo everyone it’s j yet again , coming in HOT with a new muse ( correction new mess ) but anways you know the drill so like this or message me on discord @ jules#6729  if you’d like to plot  

I - PINTEREST

you know me and my obsession for pinterest boards so click here to find it 

II - QUICK FACTS

before i start with all the talking here are some quick facts 

dob: june 6th 1999

lives with her mom only , father is unknown ( at least that’s what her mother says ) 

no other siblings aka shes an only child ( of her mother ofc ) 

moved to charleston at the age of 10 so she’s been around for about 12 years now 

nicknames: mira ,sami though she prefers to be called by her name instead of nicknames 

dyes her hair a lot like but prefers being a brunette 

is pansexual

III - BIO

before we get to samira’s birth , we have to go back to where it all starts with the young alia faras , a woman born in charleston with dreams of becoming a world-famous actress , and a drive so big as if there wasn’t anything she wouldn’t do in order to achieve it . it was at the age of twenty-four when samira’s mother packed everything and her beloved charleston to achieve the hollywood dream. but things didn’t exactly start off as good as she hoped for , one audition after the other , the rejections kept coming and coming as if there was no end to it . but alia never stopped dreaming , she knew there was someone out there who would be willing to give her a chance and so here he was , a beautiful man by the name of REDACTED , whos promises were so big that she couldn’t say no to an offer like his. not only was he kind , but the missing ring on his finger could only mean that the man was single, and before you knew it , the man who was willing to help her become the star she is destined to be he also suddenly became her other half , her soulmate . this relationship was like no other , he cared about her so much , in a way no other man did before him . 

months go by but the mans promises never come to realization , she never got the roles she wanted , but hey at least they loved each other right , there’s still time for her to shine , she’s still young after all . and before you know it the young woman had not only fallen head over hills for this man , but was also bearing his child  , news that ware supposed to tighten her relationship with this man and maybe seal it forever , her fairy tale world suddenly crashed as the man revealed that he already had a wife and children of his own , and alia and her child had no place around him anymore . and here she was pregnant and alone , about to face a life she wasn’t prepared for . 

the first nine years of samira’s life weren’t too good . her mom was working two jobs so she can pay their bills , she was often left with one of her mom’s friends/neighbors since samira’s mom didn’t exactly have the time or money to be a mom . but it all changed suddenly when on her 10th birthday , when her mom rushed home and packed their bags , claiming they were going to a much better place and so charleston was introduced . suddenly their small apartment was gone  , instead the two lived in a big house filled with everything one could imagine . ever since then samira and her mom have been living a pretty lavish life , with neither of them having to work at all , but the question still remains , where does all their money come from 

SPOILER ALERT 

ok ok so you’ve guessed it probably but basically mommy went all girlboss and threatened samira’s dad for money or else’s she’ll ruin their picture perfect fam . and since the mystery dad is a pretty big deal he started paying an allowance of sorts where he pays them a huge amount of money so they keep everything under wraps  

 IV - PERSONALITY

girlie is very that bitch , shes obsessed with herself 

sis is secretive af like she doesn't share much about her home life even to her closest friends 

shes spoiled rotten by her mother 

get extremely mad when people ask where the money comes from like just dont 

is willing to do anything to achieve her goals 

can easily persuade people to do dumb shit with her 

V - CONNECTIONS

you know me always down for brainstorming but here’s a few quick ideas 

ride or dies ; exes on good / bad terms ; fwb , one-night stands / hook-ups ; enemies ; enemies to friends and vice versa ; childhood friends ; - aka the ones i had on romeo im sorry but my mind = blank 

[derekmsheen]

The Death Of Michael Sheen PT.1

"Hi Derek, it's your Uncle Bob. I'm at the hospital and I wanted to let you know that your father finally passed away about twenty minutes ago. I'm so sorry. We're all here now, do you think you can meet us in the next hour?"

I closed my voicemail and hit "redial". The phone only made it past half of the first ring before he answered.

I told him I was just leaving a club and would rush over immediately. My stomach began to ache and my throat went dry as I thought about having to share this moment with my family. How was I supposed to react? I was suddenly overcome with a wave of confusion and mixed emotion as I tried quickly to reconcile the absolute finality of it all. This was the end.

I remember listening to "Crazy", by Gnarls Barkley, on repeat all the way to the hospital as the numbness washed over me.

I pulled up to the ticket machine at the entrance of the underground parking garage and immediately started to panic at the thought of having to take two separate elevators up to ICU. I took a deep breath, took my ticket and drove down two ramps until I found an empty spot. I walked to the first elevator, made sure I had my phone to keep me focused on something other than the thought of the doors never opening again and trapping me between floors.

The main floor lift was in much better shape than the one that went from the garage to the lobby: the doors were bigger and opened from both directions. There was room to move around and I even spotted a visible ceiling hatch, in case my nightmares came true. "Always know your exits" is a constantly playing mantra in my head, in any situation where I have little control over the space.

As the elevator doors opened to reveal the cream walls of the ICU floor, I could already see the cluster of family huddled near the end of the longish hallways. I took a breath and stepped out of the kill-box.

My Uncle saw me first and broke from the group, which included my Grandmother, my older sister, younger sister, my aunt and my cousin Lisa (who would pass away, unexpectedly two years later. I loved her so much. Very funny).

His face was pale and exhausted. He'd been at the hospital most of his free time, while my father lay in a coma.

I feel like I should explain the events leading up to my father’s fall down the rabbit hole: it's a real doozy.

The week of our wedding (August 12th, 2005) my dad called and wanted to get together beforehand. He said he had our wedding gifts and wanted to catch up: we hadn't really talked or seen much of each other since, what we both came to term as, "the thing that happened".

THE THING THAT HAPPENED:

Sometime around 1998 I was living in a small two bedroom house, close to the airport. I was working at a tiny percussion shop and teaching music in my spare time. It was about this time that my sister called to tell me that she had been diagnosed with the AIDS virus.

She cried into the phone as she told me that dad and grandpa had hung up on her after calling it a "fag disease".

I angrily called my father and I'll never forget the fight we had. I screamed at my grandfather and dad over the phone: how could they be so cruel? How could they leave her out in the cold at a time like this?

“She was your CHILD!”

I broke the handset of my phone, slamming it against a wall and the last contact I had with any of them, for a while anyway, was when my father pulled into my driveway with a pickup truck full of refrigerator sized cardboard boxes.

"You wanna be her friend? Here, you can take care of all of the shit she left behind!" as he unloaded the contents in my driveway and drove away, out of my life again. We wouldn't speak again for almost two years.

As I dragged the giant boxes into the back of my house, I realized it was mostly clothes. So many clothes.

She was a working model and had a lot of designer labels and runway pieces. I spent days trying to organize it. My sister would call me from Florida, twice a week, and tell me how her treatments were progressing. I'd started sending her money to help pay for some experimental treatments and eventually took on some extra students to help out with rent and food. I was wiring her around $300 or more a week and I was happy to get the calls where she had good news on her T-Cell count. Sometimes I got the opposite calls, where her energy was so low she could barely muster words.

Those were the nights I would weep into my hands after hanging up the phone.

After a few months, her roommate would start calling me with updates as my sister was too weak to talk. I wanted to fly out and spend some time with her, but she insisted I stay in Seattle because she didn't want me to see her at her most vulnerable. I understood and continued helping take care of the bills. She eventually wanted me to send her some of her clothes and I was able to send a few small boxes, but with Summer coming, my student load was getting cut in half and I was on a much tighter budget. A 30lb box of clothes to Florida was roughly $140 and I easily had eight monolithic boxes filled with heavy cotton, boiled wool, silk and rayon. Between the money for treatment and shipping I was starting to feel the squeeze, so I took on another job to help ease the burden.

Then I got the call.

She had passed away from complications due to the AIDS virus.

Her roommate spent an hour on the phone with me, while I cried and shared some stories. She let me know they had already planned for a small service but still could use some money for burial costs and arrangements.

I made a couple calls to my grandparents and other family to let them know what happened and to ask if they could help with the funeral costs. It was a resounding no. By this time I wasn't surprised.

The next day I cleaned out my savings and sent her a check for $2500.

I received a call the day of services, from my sister's roommate, that it was a small but lovely wake and several of her friends made it by and there were beautiful things said about her and we both cried. She thanked me for all of my help and wondered if I could send the rest of her belongings to Florida? She would need help with the rent, now that my sister was gone and she could sell a lot of the designer stuff to help cover costs. I wasn't sure how to tell her that I literally had no money left? I couldn't buy a stamp or an envelope to stick it on.

I could hear the disappointment in her voice as I calmly tried to explain just how strapped I was, but she eventually let me go and said she'd check back in a couple of weeks.

In the meantime, I got a call from my cousin Lisa who wondered if she and my older sister, Tammy, could come over and look through some of the clothes. Since my sister had officially passed between worlds, it made sense to start getting rid of the five refrigerator boxes full of clothes. I told them to ABSOLUTELY come over, take whatever fit and I began the process of separating the higher end designer labels into a pile to send to Florida.

When they came over it was a relief: the last few days had been a real downer and I was so angry that no one else in my family seemed to even give a shit.

When Lisa and Tammy arrived, the dark clouds instantly lifted and laughter filled my little house for the first time in weeks. We shared stories as they went through the boxes, holding things up to see if they fit or just making fun of some of the crazy stuff she had in her collection. They eventually helped clear a quarter of the room and the cigarette I enjoyed, when they left, was an almost religious experience.

The shock had the same effect as deep heating rub: at first it covered my whole body in an icy chill that felt almost pleasant before a stinging, inescapable hotness blistered every nerve in searing pain. I set the phone back into the cradle, calmly walked into my bedroom and punched through two sheets of drywall.

Directly preceding my drywall attack , my grandmother had called out of the blue (since the embargo, we hadn't talked in months) to let me know, calmly and with a touch of mean-spirited glee, that they were just so glad that my sister was back from Florida, safe and sound. In fact, they were so happy she was alive that they were going to help her get on her feet and co-sign a home loan for her and wasn't that just marvelous that she wasn't dead and isn't it funny that you thought she was dead and we all had a feeling she was faking it?

I managed to barely squeak out a weak protest "...but I helped pay for her funeral?" before I heard my grandfather laughing about it in the background. Then she told me that my sister was very angry at me for giving her clothes away and she thought I should reimburse her for whatever was missing.

They were almost proud of how wounded I was.

What.

The.

Fuck.

...was wrong with these people?

Needless to say, we didn't speak much after that. Until my dad reached out to me, a few days before my wedding, my contact with all of them had been limited to uncomfortable holiday visits or brief birthday calls, but my trust in them had been destroyed.

He walked up to the front door of my work with great effort and once inside he fought to catch his breath leaning on his cane. It was almost surreal to see him like this: his once hulking and powerful body had been reduced to a weakened, skeletal frame and his face was a sallow mask that appeared to be sliding from his skull. His hands were covered in inky bruises, from multiple IV lines and there was a dark purple sore under his right eye.

I hadn't realized just how much time had passed since we'd seen each other, or just how sick he really was.

"Hi son".

His voice was a gravelly, hoarse cough.

"Hey Michael" I returned. I'd started calling him by his name around this time. I knew it hurt him, but seeing him in this state, it didn't bring me that same private joy. His face registered a slight wince and he asked if I was ready to get lunch. I told my boss I'd be back in a couple of hours and I walked him out to the parking lot.

"Hey, before we go, I have something for you and Alanya. It's in the trunk. Can you help me get it out?"

"Yeah...dad" I replied with some confusion.

He pushed a button on the key fob and the Cadillac’s trunk popped open. He painfully lurched towards the car and I could see two paper bags in the otherwise empty trunk.

"I thought I'd bring your wedding presents now, because...well, I don't think I'm going to make it on Saturday?"

"Dad, if this is about Mom, she's fine. Don't let that stop you from coming" I countered. I'd had a feeling he was going to back out, if for no other reason than having to face my mother, who was still full of bitter, outright rage towards him. That thirty four year old grudge hadn't weakened one single bit, if anything, it had become more firmament, like when lava cools and hardens into rock.

He swallowed hard and spoke slowly.

"No, son, that's not it. Look, I'm going in for this surgery tomorrow and I really don't think I'm going to be out by the weekend. My doctor said I'd be ready, but I have a real bad feeling about this and I wanted to make sure I got you guys your presents in case I'm right."

Suddenly and for the first time, I saw something in my father's face that I'd never seen before: regret.

He attempted a weak smile and said “it’s towels and a coffee maker. I know it’s not exciting, but I thought it was stuff you could use.”

(Footnote: as of this writing I still have one of the towels left. I cried the day we threw the other towels away and insisted on holding onto one, just for the memory of it. The coffee maker didn’t make it.)

“Thanks dad, it’s actually exactly what we needed. Grandma must have told you what was on the registry.”

“She did. I just couldn’t afford some of the other stuff, but I wanted to make sure I got you guys something” he countered.

I took the two bags and moved them to the trunk of my car, while he backed the Caddy out and then I jumped into the front seat.

He could barely turn his head, “You wanna go to the burger place up the street?”, he asked.

“Yeah, dad. That sounds great.”

We didn’t speak much, but it was a pleasant lunch.

It was the last time I would ever see him walk again.

The day before my wedding my Uncle called to tell me my dad had complications after his surgery, which I’d just discovered was a routine angioplasty. The complications in question didn’t occur during the surgery, but after when he was being wheeled to ICU. Apparently the nurse decided to take a shortcut through an area under construction. As my father groggily protested, demanding he be secured in the chair, she accidentally hit an obstacle and sent him

Headfirst down two very long flights of stairs. He suffered spinal injuries and required microsurgery to repair the intense fracture of his skull. The prognosis at the time was not good: paralysis from the neck down, speech and vision problems, memory loss. The works.

This would only be the beginning of a nearly unbelievable series of events.

Mere days after my wife and I returned from our honeymoon, I received a call from my Uncle (by this point he would be the only one to call me anymore if there was an emergency. Of which there would be several more) informing me that there had been another accident that had sent my dad back into emergency surgery. Apparently one of the orderlies neglected to secure the side rails and he rolled directly out of bed and his head hit the corner of a side table, before landing on his back. His neck snapped when he hit the table, with the added bonus of re-fracturing his skull, not to mention undoing the delicate spinal fusion surgery when he hit the floor.

In other words: he was officially a fucking mess.

Alanya and I immediately raced down to the hospital, where the rest of the family was. She could visibly see just how agitated I suddenly became when the prospect of having to share space with them was presented. She kept reminding me to focus on my uncle and my dad.

“Remember, it’s not about them. It’s about him” she would keep chanting, over and over like a mantra. Somehow the universe heard her and decided it would be super cool if we all showed up at the exact same time so we could cram into the same series of elevators together.

She secretly grabbed my hand and let me squeeze most of the blood out of her’s. My neck and back were soaked with perspiration by the time the final elevator door opened and I nearly, cartoonishly lunged past my family in order to kiss the floor.

Have I mentioned that I don’t do well in hospitals? Hospitals and elevators.

The entire clan made their way, loudly, down the otherwise serene hallways. Past the rooms of the sleeping, the dying, the infirm, and the attending physician stopped to give us a heads up. Michael had massive spinal and neck injuries and his speech was going to be slow, but he was already making a faster recovery than any of them expected. There were sure to be long term effects as a result of this last round of injuries.

One of those was that he would most certainly be a quadriplegic.

When we made our way to his room I thought I was prepared, but nothing could be further from the truth. His head was covered with stitches and rested inside a metal halo, to keep his spine straight and his head from moving. He looked even thinner than the last time I’d seen him, especially his arms and legs. Christ, it hadn’t even been that long since I’d seen him and he looked like a completely different person and to see him so helpless was hard for me reconcile. He had survived so many times and with an unmitigated streak of luck usually only reserved for fictional movie characters, whose salvation is only written as a plot device to make the hero seem invulnerable. Yet, here he was, broken and handicapped by a flight of stairs and a lapse of judgement.

I suddenly realized the depth of what true comedy really meant:

Life is a series of random circumstances delegated by nothing and with no design, and although there seems to be a pattern, it’s really just our mind’s way of protecting us from the fabric of pure chaos.

Or something like that.

He tried to smile and shared a few platitudes about how the Lord has a plan for him and no matter what the outcome was, he’d just trust in him no matter what his will was. Then, when everyone left the room, he asked me to take him outside and sneak him a cigarette. I had an orderly help him into a wheelchair and Alanya and I wheeled him down the hall, into an elevator and out to the smoking terrace. I had to hold the cigarette in his mouth for him and it seemed so surreal to again help my father break the rules, simply because he asked me and I still desperately seeked that approval from him. When I wheeled him back, his nurse could smell the smoke on him. She took me into the hall to dress me down: his lung capacity was weak, his immune system was lowered and he’d just had minor heart surgery. I tried to appear sincere and apologetic, but underneath, I felt like it was one of the last cigarettes we would smoke together.

I quit a month later, a week before they found him in a coma.

At some point during his convalescence, the hospital administrators (I’m assuming this) felt he was becoming a liability and decided a sound course of action was to move him to a full time nursing facility. His condition had been slowly deteriorating during his stay in ICU and so it was decided, without contacting the family, to move him to a state run home.

This predates Yelp, however. Had they had that handy application to research the quality of the place they’d decided to ship him to, they may have reconsidered. Especially since the Attorney General was already investigating the staff for patient abuse and insurance fraud.

Once they started questioning the why and where of what they had done with my father, the hospital decided to obfuscate Instead of volunteer, which caused a weeks long delay in tracking him down.

Here’s where it all goes off the rails...

Eventually, my grandmother finally succeeded in finding his location and with a sheriff’s deputy present, they found his room bolted shut with a padlock from the outside. Once removed, they opened the door and the smell of rot immediately washed through the hallway in waves of sickness and nausea, followed by flies. Lots of flies.

The curtains were drawn and daylight struggled to punch through the holes in the ratted fabric, as they made their way to the hospital bed where Michael lay on his back on a hospital sheet, now yellowed with sweat and blackened with dried human waste. He was unresponsive and when the ambulance arrived, the paramedics noted that his diaper appeared to have been last changed a couple of weeks prior. The decay was so bad that parts of the sheet and diaper had fused to his skin and the flies had been feeding and laying eggs on and in him. The final prognosis, once he was returned to ICU, was that the necrosis caused by the lack of care had created a staph infection that was now in his bone marrow.

It was very unlikely that he would recover, but they kept him on life support for a few weeks in the hopes that his condition might improve.

I only visited him once during this period. I read a copy of Time magazine to him, as suggested by his attending nurse. She told me that coma patients were sometimes very aware of their surroundings and that any positive stimulus might help them recover.

About ten minutes into an article about Guantanamo, my dad opened his eyes and looked at me. He swallowed and licked his lips, trying to bring moisture back to his mouth in an attempt to communicate. I just sat, stunned, as he struggled to speak.

[killingamericanhighereducation]

The Dirty, Rotten, Crooked, Broken, Student Loan System and The Immoral Bankers, Brokers, Collectors, and Corrupt Politicians Who Make Billions Off of It While the Courts Garnish Wages and Destroy Lives

Why when I pay the 850.00 or 1100.00 per month payments, the principle amount seems to not move and has gone up. I have been working on this debt since 1996. Got off of welfare as college was the way out....or so I thought. When I retire, I will be living on the streets. I tried. I failed. I raised my kids and they have student loans too as we thought that was the only way to get out of poverty. Never again will I encourage a young person to attend college in the US. Not a good idea. I have a nursing degree, my son has an IT degree and my daughter a business degree. But we barely get by. No home purchases, no car and no giving to economy. What is wrong with this picture? Lisa Powers  December 20, 2019 Manchester   (https://studentdebtcrisis.org/read-student-debt-stories/)

The Killing of American Higher Education - PART ONE

Introduction

The U.S. spends almost double that of anywhere else in the world on higher education and that's before the interest charges are shackled upon the students. Nine million Americans are either in default, deferment or forbearance on their student loans with a million more each year. These students are Democrats, Republicans, African American, Caucasians, Latinx, Asian, Native American, young, old, married, divorced, LGBTQ, fathers, mothers...every single demographic that exists. It's not a political party issue - it's blatant criminal activity by our elected officials, their collection agencies and the Department of Education. They have created a life-long debt sentence for these students for their own profit at the cost of our country's future.

This paper will include politicians and politics but is not pro Democratic Party or Pro Republican Party. The reality of today is that most politicians are arrogant, self-serving assholes and all have damaged our country in pursuit of their own wealth building agendas (this is also not new).

The student loan debt crisis didn't just appear. The warning sirens have been blaring for over a decade with the causes of it going further back than that. The subprime mortgage crisis was also seen years before but again, the people that could have changed it, the politicians, chose to do nothing until it was too late and then they bailed out the firms to the tune of $30 trillion. That same year Goldman Sachs paid out record bonuses to the very people who caused it. Why was this allowed and why is the student loan debt allowed? Because nasty, rotten, bankers, brokers, collection agencies, politicians and billionaires are making a great deal of money off of the dreams and misfortunes of students and the mismanagement of higher education (again allowed). Shame on them all. A pox on them all. There are solutions beyond the news bites and campaign rhetoric but solutions don’t pay as well.

Forced to compete in the higher education war for a job. Now I'm crushed with the weight of student loan payments and no end to the payoff. I've been forced to withdraw from contributing to my retirement fund so that I can make the enormous monthly payments. On a 50k loan, I'll (if I don't expire first) will have paid over 250k for this loan. By the way, my annual income will never match the debt I've accrued in order to compete for a professional hire career! I think it's important to note that community colleges had not yet molded programs to support a full-time employee who would be taking full-time credit hours. This forced many adult college bound students into the private college sector. These colleges continue to price-gauge adult students with inflated credit hour costs, books, and fees. My best option would be to quit working all together! I'll never see the light of day, so why bother making a good living? I support student debt forgiveness! Jennifer  November 25, 2019 Columbus (https://studentdebtcrisis.org/read-student-debt-stories/)

The student loan debt crisis is not new. It wasn’t like a tornado that pops up with the warning sirens giving only minutes of notice before it destroys everything in its path. It has been in the making since the 1970s and touched down on land over a decade ago. It was seen then – sirens blaring and it was projected to get worse. The narrative never changed - do not ignore this or very bad things will happen – and it has. Our elected officials didn’t just ignore it but instead they have actively, albeit quietly, ensured the system remained broken and has supported the loan “servicing” agencies in pushing their boots harder on the necks of borrowers for their own profits.These numbers, including our $1.7 trillion student loan debt figures are always increasing so this is a snapshot of the first quarter of 2019 –

Federal loan borrowers in repayment: 18.6 million.

Federal loan borrowers with loans in deferment: 3.4 million.

Federal loan borrowers with loans in forbearance: 2.7 million.

Federal loan borrowers with loans in default: 5.2 million.

11.3 million American citizens cannot make their payments. Twenty-five percent of all borrowers will go into default and that’s where the true ugly begins. At this point interest begins to quickly pile on and can double, triple, quadruple…more from the original loan amount.

Once in default, the loan is sent to collections - this is also the point where the power finance players make their money. With the blessing of congress and the courts, wages are garnished, social security payments are garnished, tax refunds are taken in full, you are no longer eligible for deferments or forbearance, and your credit is ruined. This can also cost you your job, or prevent you from future employment. This will last until the loan is paid back or until death (except private student loans where they can come after the estate).

How we reached this point can be very confusing (intentionally designed) so I’m going to attempt to deconstruct the main areas that facilitated the fraud and the areas that keep it going and growing. All of these issues have been previously reported by numerous journalists but have not always tied the relationships together of higher education, politicians (all branches of the federal government), collection/servicing agencies, financial institutions, billionaires and how they worked and continue to work together to commit such a monumental deception on the American public.

There are many rabbit holes that they want you to get lost in so I’ll address some of those right now. This piece will not explain all the differences between all the various student loans available today – understanding that like a financial aid officer at a college doesn’t change the corruption. It will not explain in-depth how all the financial tools work involved in this industry – understanding that like a broker doesn’t change the corruption. It will not explain the various loan repayment programs and faulty formulas used by the collection/servicing agencies – understanding these like the Department of Education will not change the corruption. It cannot cover every institution that has operated fraudulently nor all the dirty, immoral, unethical people involved…but I’ll give it the old college try.  

Beware phony advocates for reform that appear to speak on your behalf with partial fixes but do so just to ensure there are no real changes to the system that would result in any financial losses for themselves and the masters they serve. The predatory student loan industry exists because our elected officials are either corrupt themselves, don’t take the time to truly understand all the complex aspects of the abuse and fraud in the system (they choose to listen to the industry’s own lobbyists instead of their own constituents), or are just plain morons. Regardless, all kill American higher education.

The American student loan system – government loansharking enforced with judicial muscle. The mafia never had it so good.

No Good Deed Goes Unexploited

It is important to understand the history of how we arrived at our current crisis, because as I said it’s not new, it didn’t just happen last year. It was not only allowed but designed, fed, and encouraged to be the devious monster that exists today. This is not the complete history but what is needed to bring us to today.

1944. The GI Bill was established to reward veterans who served their country during WWII to catch up with those Americans who remained in college during this time. Prior to this, many of these people would never have been able to afford to go to college before or after their service. This is really the first involvement we see of the federal government assisting citizens who didn’t have the wealth to attend college on their own. There were advocates that wanted this extended beyond veterans to allow more Americans to benefit from higher education but the majority members of congress felt that since they never received that, no one else should either. No free rides was the mantra.

1958. The “Red Menace” swept the country and with Russia’s launch of Sputnik, Congress would sponsor low-interest loans under national security. It’s of interest to also note that the National Defense Education Act also included debt cancellation for those students who became teachers. There was still no support for need or academic based undergraduate funding.

I wanted to go to school to help people, and my master’s degree allows me to do that every day. But with over $75,000 in debt, partially due to ever-accruing interest, it feels like I’ll never get ahead and will struggle with this my entire life. I know God will take care of me; I just don’t know how. Emily August  May 23, 2019 Detroit (https://studentdebtcrisis.org/read-student-debt-stories/)

1965. President Johnson and the 89th Congress enacted the Higher Education Act. Title IV was the first true federal government commitment to providing college opportunity to students in need. This included the Guaranteed Student Loan (GSL) and College Work-Study Programs which also applied to middle-income families. Because the cost of education was somewhat affordable then, any loans to the middle class would have been a small percentage of the program. Enrollments increased and student aid appropriations took the lion’s share of compared to other domestic social programs. 1972. This was a big year in higher education. The reauthorization of the HEA laid the foundation for today’s student loan system including establishing the term “postsecondary” to recognize that not everyone needed a four-year bachelor’s degree but did need further education of some sort. This would allow financial aid for those students attending community colleges, trade schools, vocational schools and students attending part-time. The reauthorization also included:

Pell Grants began here as a way students could directly receive federal aid beyond the campus-based programs.

Private schools were now allowed to participate fully in receiving these monies.

State Incentive Grants which provided matching dollars to help states expand their need-based grants.

Hidden quietly in the darkest corners of Title IV where mold feeds and vermin defecate, they established the Student Loan Marketing Association, aka Sallie Mae, as a publicly chartered corporation to increase funding to guaranteed student loans (GSL).

This was to be a new era in the building of our country. We were the world leaders in almost everything during this time and the importance of education was critical to our country’s growth and future prosperity. It was supposed to be a good thing.

The Old Sons Of Bitches

In the early 1970s, while the protests of the Vietnam War were still in full swing on college campuses throughout the country, legislators became paranoid that these long-haired, lazy, hippie, pinkos would use the bankruptcy system to get out of paying the federal government back for their student loans (this was the early 70s and our government was completely controlled by wealthy, white men who did think like this). This fear had nothing to do with reality and there was no evidence to support this position. At that time their main target was those pursuing medical and law degrees that were higher priced. Keep in mind that the degree costs were a small fraction compared to today’s tuition.

In 1973 the Congressional Commission on the Bankruptcy Laws of the United States issued a report which included that student loan debt cannot be discharged for five years after graduation. Three years later the Education Amendments of 1976, Section 439A, was adopted even though the Government Accounting Office (GAO) reported less than 1% of student loans had gone to bankruptcy. Now, no student loans could be discharged in bankruptcy until five years after graduation, or unless the borrower could prove repayment imposed “undue hardship” (which was never defined by the law makers). While this passed it did have more than a few critics. Michigan Congressman, James O’Hara stated that establishing this “... treats educational loans precisely as the law now treats loans incurred by fraud, felony, and alimony-dodging. No other legitimately contracted consumer loan … is subjected to the assumption of criminality which this provision applies to every educational loan.”

In 1978, with the passage of the Bankruptcy Reform Act, the exception to bankruptcy discharge of student loans was moved from the Higher Education Act to the U.S. Bankruptcy Code at 11 USC 523(a)(8). While Congress sought to reverse the earlier exception, the Senate’s version prevailed maintaining the inability to discharge student loans for five years and adding that it applied to loans back by the government and nonprofit institutions of higher education.

In 1979, Congress wanted to address the problem of lack of participation by lenders (although this wasn’t known to be a problem by anyone) so they quietly passed an amendment giving banks a higher rate of return on student loan by linking them changes in Treasury bill rates. Prior to this the government set a cap on what lenders would make. With banks making more money, the student loan industry was born.

Just because the corrupt say it’s legal, doesn’t mean it’s still not corrupt.

The Noose Tightens

1986-92. Loan volume shot up again after the 1986 and 1992 Higher Education Act (HEA) reauthorizations.  In 1990 the Crime Control Act extended the period before student loans could be discharged in bankruptcy from five years to seven years and then a year later the statute of limitations on defaulted loans, six years, was totally eliminated by the Higher Education Technical Amendments. There was a failed push to increase Pell Grants to reduce the reliance on loans and instead Congress raised the borrowing limits of students and created a new unsubsidized loan for the middle-class that was no longer based on financial need. This meant anyone could now take on a

We are being held captive in an 8% pay back on our kids Parent Plus loans. We have tried to re-fi them, and nobody will touch it. This has made our monthly bills higher than our income! It should be illegal to offer these loans without qualifying, and to keep us locked in this excessively high interest rate! Laura MacCormack  May 9, 2019 Green Creek (https://studentdebtcrisis.org/read-student-debt-stories/)

student loan regardless of their income or parents’ income. Smelling more money could be made off of the well-meaning, caring, loving parents they also uncapped the Parent Loan (PLUS) program. Now parents could borrow, on behalf of their children, the full amount of their children’s’ educational costs. Because of these changes, enrollment took off and in a short two year period the amount borrowed increased over $10 billion.The Student Loan Reform Act of 1993 revised how loans are serviced, financed and allowed for more students to take out more loans. This also established an income-based repayment plan stretching out to a home mortgage length of 25 years. The Department of Education responded by creating more than 70 complex rule-making packages further complicating the regulatory process for students, schools and the government itself.

By 1998 the Higher Education Amendments, Section 971 eliminated the seven year period required before a student loan could be discharged in bankruptcy. There had been no debates or hearings on this prior to President Clinton signing the bill into law. This meant there was no longer a statute of limitations nor could student loans even be considered for bankruptcy – ever, unless the ambiguous, indeterminate, undefined “undue hardship” provision could be proven.

In 2005 the final nail was hammered into the hands of student borrowers by Congress with the passage of the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act. This meant all federal and private educational loans were excepted from bankruptcy discharge unless the undefined “undue hardship” could be proven (note – you have a better chance of being hit by lighting, which would probably be a welcome relief to my student loan borrowers, than having a judge dismiss a student loan in bankruptcy).

The politicians, with help from their financial keepers, knew by now that money, lots and lots of money, could be made off of student borrowers. By increasing funding to everyone, by ensuring every kind of nonprofit and private educational institution was eligible to receive federal and private loans, by supporting the skyrocketing costs of higher education, by removing the only tool that could provide some kind of market correction (bankruptcy), and by placing student loan debt in the financial markets (SLABS) which allowed those on the inside to make billions of dollars, they had successfully created the most devious, destructive system ever in the history of the United States.

I am 31 years old, divorced single mom of 2 with $134,000 + in student loan debt, much thanks to the interest. One loan I borrowed was for $5000, which I have paid roughly $5000 back, but still owe over $7000. So a $5000 loan turned into a $12000 loan after they tacked on interest. The remaining loans I have are private and federal. I can't afford to purchase a home. I can't afford to save towards my retirement. And there is absolutely nothing that I can do but to continue to pay the interest only payments to make it more affordable for me a month, but it will cost me 1,000s of dollars of additional interest to the life of my loans. Life happens, and the fact that we are punished with high interest that balloons our loans to an unrealistic amount is, without the ability to file bankruptcy or have the option to pause our loan payments without ramifications is wrong. Christie  May 1, 2019 Frisco (https://studentdebtcrisis.org/read-student-debt-stories/)

What was originally meant to help those of us with the least financial means attend higher education, breaking the cycle of poverty, was now viewed and constructed by those in power as a money making machine. Success of higher education forever forward was measured by the amount of campaign contributions from this new “industry.” Citizens were cut and bled and the feeding frenzy began.

[trendingnewsb]

Gloria Allred on Suing Trump: Its Going to Be a Battle

PARK CITY, Utah This will teach you a lesson.

Those six words lit a fire under Gloria Allred, the renowned womens rights attorney, that burns brightly to this day.

To understand Allredher motivations, her fears, her single-minded pursuit of justiceyou have to know her story. Its an eye-opener, and one that few of her (mostly) male detractors, who have taken to dismissively branding her an ambulance chaser or media whore, have even scratched the surface of.

Im all about empowerment, she says. Words will never stop me.

In the mid-60s, Allred split from her husband after his bipolar disorder began posing a threat to their childs well-being. A single mother, she moved with her young daughter, Lisa, from Philadelphia to sunny California. Shortly thereafter, and needing to blow off some steam, she took a trip with one of her girlfriends to Acapulco. There, she met a striking physician who was to take her out for a night on the townbut first, he said, he had to make some house calls. He guided Allred into a house, only no one was home. The man brandished a gun. Then he raped her.

It gets worse. The attack left her pregnant, and it being the 1960s, a safe, legal abortion wasnt an option. So Allred was forced into a back-alley abortion. She went alone. The procedure left her hemorrhaging, and, losing considerable blood, she checked herself into the hospital, where she was placed in a ward with numerous other women whod received the same procedure. Many of them didnt make it. As Allred lay in recovery, the nurse tending to her looked her dead in the eye and said, This will teach you a lesson.

Allred has, in the decades since, became not just a champion for women, but for minorities, too. Shes taken on the Catholic Church, the Friars Club, the TSA, you name it. In 1995, she became a household name after representing the family of Nicole Brown Simpson during O.J.s murder trial; in 2004, she filed the first lawsuit to challenge the same-sex marriage laws in California, on behalf of her longtime pals Robin Taylor and Diane Olson. (The California Supreme Court ruled in their favor, setting an important legal precedent in the fight to legalize same-sex marriage.)

I represent numerous persons who allege they are victims of Harvey Weinstein, and some of them allege that they were the victims of inappropriate conduct here as well. At Sundance.

Gloria Allred

And at 76, she shows no signs of slowing down. In recent years, Allred, whos been dubbed the master of the press conference, has garnered headlines for representing 33 of Bill Cosbys sexual-assault accusers; several women accusing the director Roman Polanski, film executive Harvey Weinstein, and politician Roy Moore of sexual-assault; and three women whove accused Donald Trump of sexual-assault. Shes currently representing The Apprentice contestant Summer Zervos in a defamation suit against President Trump, after he called her a liar for claiming to have been assaulted by him at the Beverly Hills Hotel in 2007the same hotel where he allegedly rendezvoused with porn star Stormy Daniels.

Oh, and if that werent enough, shes the subject of an inspiring new documentary Seeing Allred, that debuted at this years Sundance Film Festival and will be out Feb. 9 on Netflix. The film, directed by Roberta Grossman and Sophie Sartain, chronicles Allreds journey from working-class Philly to celebrity attorney.

I sat down with Allred at Sundance to discuss the doc and her storied career.

Its interesting that this documentary is premiering at Sundance, because this is the place where Rose McGowan alleges that Harvey Weinstein raped her.

I represent numerous persons who allege they are victims of Harvey Weinstein, and some of them allege that they were the victims of inappropriate conduct here as well. At Sundance. But I cant discuss them further.

The McGowan episode is said to have happened in 1997. Its 21 years later. One of the major fest themes this year is courageous women, with documentaries on Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Jane Fonda, and yourself, and the Respect Rally that you spoke at. There seems to have been a seismic shift both at this festival and beyond with the #MeToo and #TimesUp movementsit seems to have a lot to do with the election of President Trump?

I think this wave has been building for many years. Women have been speaking out long before the #MeToo movementalthough thats been importantand many of them have been speaking out with me because they want their voices to be heard, and because they demand change. But I think the wave has become a tsunami, and were never going to be the same again. Were not going to be silent anymore, because the cost of silence, they have assessed, is greater than the cost of speaking out. Its really harmed them emotionally in many cases, its harmed them economically, and in some cases they allege theyve been harmed physically as a result of trying to keep all that rage and anger about what theyve been forced to suffer within them. So I encourage them not to tranquilize themselves out of their anger and their rage but to take that as a source of energy and have it help them move forward in a positive, constructive way. It may be too late for them to sue or too late for law enforcement to assist them in any way, but its not too late for them to speak out, to demand legislative changes, to run for office, and to fight for change.

But the election of Trump seems to be the thing that lit the fuse, no? When you elevate a man to the highest office in the land whos been accused of sexual-assault by 19 women, and whos on tape bragging about assaulting womenand whos said very ugly things to you, when he said youd be very very impressed with his manhood…

Yeah, well, you might notice who prevailed in that battle. We demanded that [trans contestant Jenna Talackova] be put back in the beauty pageant and to remove the rule that you have to be a naturally-born female, and he did put her back and he did remove the rule, and of course ultimately said he was going to do that anyway.

And I meana year or two later, after we won that battle, I happened to see him at Fox News in the green room. He was on a show before I was. I was sitting there with another client and about to come on a show, and he comes in, and I thought, oh my goodness, whats he going to say to my client? So he says, Oh, Gloria. I heard you were here. He turns to my client and says, Miss so-and-so, I just want you to know: you have the best lawyer. This woman is relentless. She will never stop until she wins you the justice you think you deserve, so never, ever fire her because you will never get anyone better. I was astounded, given that wed just won that battle. And Ive never seen him since.

Whats the status of the fundraising for Summer Zervos defamation suit against President Trump? Id read that you were at $30,000 in donations at the beginning of this month.

Well, were actually not engaged in fundraising. What we have done is weve put on our webpage that if people want to contribute, they can. But weve done no fundraising activities, mailers or any of that. So many people have asked us if they can donate, and where they can donate, and we certainly welcome it because the costs of litigating a caseforget the fees, Im not charging for my feesagainst the President of the United States and his billionaire friends, some of whom may or may not be contributing to him, this is a huge endeavor. We need the support of the public, if they wish to provide it, but Im not going out actively soliciting [donations], because Im very busy with the cases.

What did you think about The New York Times piece late last month? It accused you and your daughter of partisanshipbasically, a left-wing conspiracyin receiving donations from prominent Democratic allies, like David Brock, in pursuing lawsuits against Trump.

I remember the piece youre talking about. It mixed up a lot of things that really werent related. Let me be clear: David Brock hasnt contributed one cent to us.

That money went to your daughter, Lisa Bloom.

Well, I dont know what shes received or what she hasnt received, but not one cent went to me or any of my clients. And thats all I can say.

How confident are you that Summer Zervos defamation case against Trump will go forward, and that youll be able to depose the President of the United States?

Were waiting for the courts decision. Ill say that I am hopeful, but there are very complicated legal issues involved. Weve made our arguments, hes made his motion to dismiss the arguments, weve made our arguments in opposition, theyve replied, and now were waiting to see what the court will do. The judge appears to be a very bright judge who asked the right questions from both sides. Its going to be a battle.

Trumps defense is interesting here. His team is arguing that what Trump says is protected by the First Amendment, and that the statements he makes at rallies to rouse people dont have to be entirely truthful.

Im glad you mentioned what you just said, because the reason we filed this lawsuit is because we believe the truth matters. Thats the reason. We believe truth matters, and we believe that if a person believesor has reason to believethat they were defamed, they should have a right to pursue the person that defamed them.

Has President Trumpor any of his intermediariessettled or attempted to settle with any of your clients?

Not to my knowledge.

What are your thoughts on Stormy Daniels reported $130,000 settlement with Trump? The whole situation is interesting, because Trumps longtime lawyer, Michael Cohen, is alleged to have created a company in order to transfer the settlement funds surreptitiously.

Ill just say that I did not represent her in any settlement, and therefore I have no comment if there was a settlement. But its definitelyan interesting issue. But I will say, with the film, I hope that people who see Seeing Allred understand that they can take on in their own lives people who are powerful that have hurt them. Whether these people are celebrities in the political world, the entertainment world, the sports world, the education world, they religious world, they can take this as a teaching moment and say, wait, I can stand up and do something about the injustice that has been inflicted upon me by this powerful person. That, for me, is what its all about.

I wanted to ask about your daughter, Lisa Bloom. Theres a very brief scene in the film that mentions how she worked for accused predators Harvey Weinstein and Roy Price, and it was later revealed how she provided opposition research in response to Ronan Farrows queries in an attempt to smear Weinsteins alleged victims. What are your thoughts on her decision?

[Silence]

It seemed, at least to me, like she got blinded a bit by the Hollywood element. Harvey Weinstein was opting her book for a potential film or television project. A similar thing happened with Hillary Clinton, who was developing a project with Weinstein up until the sexual-assault allegations surfaced.

My daughter has her own law firm. She decides who shes taking on as clients and who shes not. I have nothing to do with those decisions, and she doesnt decide who I take as clients or dont take as clients. So all I can say is I love her, I support hershes a wonderful lawyerand I have no comment on that other than to say Im proud of my daughter, and shes doing what she can to help victims.

Once you learn the full breadth of your story, it seems extra insidious when you see powerful menand it is mainly mencriticizing you, a person whos been assaulted, for primarily defending women who have been assaulted, harassed or discriminated against by men.

I will say that I do want to give credit and recognition to many men who come up to me and say, I have daughters. Thank you. I know youre waging this fight for my daughters. I do think that many men who care about their daughters understand that, but look, its about education. Theres always going to be some individuals who are not well informed, who want women to be subordinated, who want women to be denied their rights, and who want women to live as second-class citizens. But Im about real change. Im about empowering persons who are victims and minorities who are denied their rights, so I just think of the brave suffragists before me who fought in the United States for 72 years just to win the right to vote. I know what herstory is. What they went through was far more of an act of courage than what Ive been engaging in for 42 years, and they were not deterred by being called names or being accused of falsehoods. That doesnt deter me, either.

Read more: https://www.thedailybeast.com/gloria-allred-is-ready-to-take-president-trump-to-court-its-going-to-be-a-battle

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Why Did Republicans Vote Against Hr3

New Post has been published on https://www.patriotsnet.com/why-did-republicans-vote-against-hr3/

Why Did Republicans Vote Against Hr3

How Would Medicare Negotiate Drug Prices Under Hr 3

Why Do Most White People Vote Republican?

H.R. 3 amends the non-interference clause under current law by adding an exception that allows for the price negotiation process established by the legislation. The negotiation process applies to at least 25 and 50 single-source brand-name drugs lacking generic or biosimilar competitors, selected from among the 125 drugs with the highest net Medicare Part D spending and the 125 drugs with the highest net spending in the U.S., which could include physician-administered drugs covered under Medicare Part B, along with all insulin products. Drugs that are new to market could also be subject to negotiation if their list price is greater than median household income and their projected spending would place them among the list of drugs with the highest spending under Medicare or the U.S. overall.

In determining the maximum fair price, H.R. 3 requires the Secretary to consider research and development costs, market data, production and distribution costs, and existing therapeutic alternatives, including comparative effectiveness data. If a manufacturer offers a price that is no more than the target price, the proposal requires the Secretary to accept this as the maximum fair price for the drug. The agreed-upon negotiated price would be made available to private plan sponsors in Medicare Part D and commercial payers in group and individual markets, and to providers that administer physician-administered drugs.

Prescription Drug Costs Raise Profits For Big Pharma While Lowering Quality Of Life For Millions

Its already been a bad time for pharmaceutical companies. Many have received the brunt end of widespread public dissatisfaction after being criticized in the media and political realms.

Now that healthcare is carrying political narratives, out-of-pocket spending like the kind that would go down for Medicare parts B and D beneficiaries should HR 3 or a similar bill become law is more than just a pundit talking point.

Everyone in America knows someone who is taking an expensive medicine, Robinson said. And they vote, so this is obviously political.

Between patients out-of-pocket costs all the way up to what CMS covers, the United States spent more than $330 billion on prescription drugs in 2017.

That is an enormous draining of dollars from taxpayers out of Medicare and Medicaid, and out of the pockets of Americans who have to pay high premiums, deductibles, and copays, which are driven up significantly by the highest prescription drug costs in the world, Chris Orestis, president of LifeCare Xchange, told Healthline.

Orestis says freeing up even the smallest percentage of this money could raise the standard of living for many people, as well as having a stimulating impact on the economy.

It would also help people who react to the high costs of prescription drugs by rationing their care and dosages.

Republicans Hold Firm Against Socialism

Despite President Trumps frequent use of the bully pulpit to criticize the drug industry, the good news is that only two Republicans joined the Democrats in supporting passage of H.R. 3. House Democrats either did not read or were unmoved by multiple studies suggesting tremendous peril for small and emerging biotechs if the legislation becomes law and our investors run for the hills. More than 130 life sciences investors have publicly confirmed they would have no other choice.

Also Check: Which Republicans Might Vote For Impeachment

If Implemented The Bill Could Save Americans Billions

The Congressional Budget Office estimates that HR 3 would account for about $98 billion in savings over a 10-year period.

The price negotiation provisions would lower spending by about $456 billion, but covering dental, vision, and hearing under the Medicare program would raise spending by approximately $358 billion.

Dr. James C. Robinson, PhD, MPH, the Leonard D. Schaeffer professor of health economics and the director of the Berkeley Center for Health Technology, says HR 3 would help bring the costs of drugs in the United States closer to the International Reference Price, or what other wealthier countries pay.

For reference, the United States pays 60 percent more than Germany, another country with high healthcare costs.

The big issue is the part of HR 3 that allows CMS to negotiate drug prices under Medicare Part D, which Robinson says is predominantly run by private interests.

If youre pharma, this is bad, he told Healthline.

So What Exactly Would This Legislation Do

The centerpiece of the House Democrats’ bill would require the government to negotiate the cost of up to 250 brand-name drugs that don’t have competition and cost the U.S. health care system the most money. Insulin for diabetes would have to be included. The maximum price negotiated would be capped: It couldn’t be more than 120 percent of the average price charged in other industrialized countries that typically pay less than the United States. Drug companies would either play ball or face an excise tax starting at 65 percent and rising to 95 percent. Private insurance plans could also use the negotiated prices.

The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimated this part of the bill would save $456 billion over a 10-year period. Its projected to cost drug companies at least $500 billion in revenue, which CBO predicts would cut research funding and result in about eight fewer new drugs coming to market in the first 10 years the law was in effect, and 30 fewer drugs in the following decade.

The legislation also tries to restrain companies abilities to launch new drugs at astronomical prices by allowing the government to negotiate the cost of any medicines that come to market at list prices higher than the U.S. median household income. The plan would also cap seniors’ annual out-of-pocket spending for outpatient prescription drugs at $2,000.

Recommended Reading: Are There Any Republicans Running Against Donald Trump

Govtrackus Is Taking A New Focus On Civic Education

Help us develop the tools to bring real-time legislative data into the classroom.

If youve visited a bill page on GovTrack.us recently, you may have noticed a new study guide tab located just below the bill title. This is part of a new project to develop better tools for bringing real-time legislative data into the classroom. We hope to enable educators to build lesson plans centered around any bill or vote in Congress, even those as recent as yesterday.

Were looking for feedback from educators about how GovTrack can be used and improved for your classroom. If you teach United States government and would like to speak with us about bringing legislative data into your classroom, please reach out!

House Republicans Vote Against Slashing Costs For Prescription Drugs

A bill to lower the cost of prescription drugs passed the House with mostly Democratic support.

The House of Representatives took the issue of high prescription drug costs head on Thursday, passing a bill that promises to lower the costs of medication associated with cancer, asthma, and many other conditions.

By a 230-192 vote, H.R.3, the Elijah E. Cummings Lower Drug Costs Now Act, passed on a largely party line vote. Every Democrat supported the legislation, joined by only 2 Republicans, with the lone House independent, Rep. Justin Amash of Michigan, voting no. The bill was named after the late Rep. Elijah Cummings , who passed away earlier this year.

According to NPR, the legislation would allow the federal government to negotiate the cost of prescription drugs for Medicare, limit out-of-pocket costs for Medicare participants, and prevent drug price hikes. The Trump administration vowed to veto the legislation if it ever comes to his desk.

“In my district alone, H.R. 3 could lower breast cancer medication by $45,100, and diabetics could save up to 94% on the cost of insulin,” Rep. Lucy McBath said in an email. “I have heard heartbreaking stories from people in my community who are forced to skip doses or ration their insulin,” she added, noting too many Americans “worry about paying for their lifesaving prescription drugs.”

Rep. Ami Bera , a doctor a member of the moderate New Democrat Coalition, joined McBath in supporting the legislation.

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Read Also: Why Are The Republicans So Evil

Democrats Pass Us Bill To Lower Drug Prices That Trump Threatens To Veto

By Lisa Lambert

3 Min Read

WASHINGTON – – The U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday approved legislation aimed at driving down the prices that seniors pay for prescription drugs, but the bills future is clouded by President Donald Trumps threat of a veto and lack of support in the Senate.

The Democrat-led chamber voted 230 to 192, largely along party lines, to approve the measure that would allow the Medicare insurance program for seniors to negotiate prices for dozens of prescription drugs, including insulin. The lower drug prices would also be available to private insurance companies.

Ive seen grown men cry on the campaign trail because they cannot meet the prescription drug cost, whether they have a spouse that is ill or a child with a pre-existing conditions, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi told reporters ahead of the vote. This will make all the difference in the world.

The bill would cap prices for the countrys most expensive drugs using an international index and impose hefty fines for manufacturers that do not negotiate.

The pricing system would save the government $456 billion over 10 years, according to estimates from the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office, much of which would go toward extending Medicare coverage for vision, hearing and dental care.

The bill also would prevent price-gouging on new drugs for those with private health insurance.

Democrats And Hr 3 Taking A Harder Line Against Biomedical Innovation

Lifelong Republicans Explain Why They’re Voting Against Trump | NowThis

Shockingly, some Democrats went on the record saying a trade-off lower prices now for fewer cures in the future is acceptable. Rep. Darren Soto said, I frankly think its worth it. He should tell that to the people whose lives wont be saved by the medicines that wont be made.

House Democrats have unanimously moved to a hard-left position against the biotechnology industry, and we have some real work ahead of us to bring moderates back into the fold. In a single week, Pelosis party unanimously supported socialized price controls on drugs and persuaded the White House to strip important intellectual property protections for biologic medicines out of the U.S.-Canada-Mexico Trade Agreement.

Also Check: Why Did Democrats And Republicans Switch

Combining The Two Bills Sets Up A Political Minefield For Republicans Who Are Torn Between The Two Issues

The House is set to vote Thursday on legislation meant to lower prescription drug prices and strengthen the individual health insurance exchanges, setting up a political minefield for Republicans who are torn between the two issues.

Democratic leaders decision to combine legislation that would make it easier to bring generic drugs to market with bills that would bolster the 2010 health care law does;not damage the prospects of passage for the package of bills. But that does make it certain that most Republicans will vote against the bipartisan drug pricing legislation.

The decision to merge the bills, which Democrats say was made so that savings achieved through the drug pricing measures would pay for spending under the health insurance legislation, could open Republicans up to attacks that they voted against legislation to lower drug prices, an issue that polls show is of great concern to both Republicans and Democrats.

These are very separate issues, said Rep. Greg Walden, R-Ore., the ranking member on the Energy and Commerce Committee. How we deal with bad practices in getting drugs and samples and all that to consumer and competition in the market is different than paying for more navigators and wiping out state-regulated health insurance.

Theyre just waiting to cut the TV ads, he added.

Rep. , R-N.C., the chairman of the House Freedom Caucus, said he wasnt concerned about the show vote, but said it was a missed unique opportunity.

House Is At Work While Senate Stalls

Most people Ive spoken with in Connecticut are astounded to learn that the House of Representatives has passed more than 400 bills over this past year.

Theyre equally struck by the fact that 275 of those bills were bipartisanly supported.

They were then deeply disappointed to learn that the Senate has not taken any of them up over the past year.

The media coverage, including social media, has been focused on impeachment, a divided Congress, and a divided nation. Is it any wonder then why people have little faith in government and are fed up with the process?

Yet, the truth is much has been done by one chamber, the House of Representatives, while the President and the Senate continue to falsely assert the only thing were working on is impeachment.

The summary below indicates what the House of Representatives has passed to help the American people.

Hailing from the state where the activism around the tragedy at Sandy Hook took place, Im proud that the House of Representatives took action and passed three gun violence prevention bills in 2019. Gun violence is an epidemic that is tearing our communities apart, and we need to make responsible changes now.

In addition to voting to lower prescription drugs, Democrats are also working to protect those with pre-existing conditions and strengthen affordable health care for Americans.

These are just a few of the 400-plus bills the House has passed that are awaiting consideration in the Senate.

You May Like: What Republicans Are Voting Against Trump

How Did Pelosi Keep Various Democratic Factions On Board

She carefully crafted legislation that could appeal to diverse wings of her caucus.

Moderate Democrats pushed for a bill that could become law and wasnt just a messaging document. Progressives argued that since no Pelosi bill would get the time of day from McConnell, the party should go bold.

The Pelosi bill attempts to appease both camps by focusing on government price negotiations for the highest-cost, highest-use drugs that enjoy patent-protected monopolies. Unlike previous Democratic attempts at drug price negotiations, it contains hefty sticks to guarantee the government gets prices down for those drugs. But it would allow the status quo to prevail for most medicines, letting the private market continue to dictate their prices.

Progressive Democrats appeared to have the upper hand over moderates as the bill went through its final iterations. By threatening to block the bill from getting a vote if Pelosi didn’t make last-minute changes, progressives won two big last-minute concessions, expanding the scope of the legislation.

Why Are There Pro

H.R. 3 has been protested almost since the day it was introduced. The No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act, which does pretty much what it says on the tin imposes a series of draconian restrictions on abortion funding made waves at first because of its forcible rape clause, which aimed to restrict the definition of rape as it applied to rape and incest exemptions, and which garnered a significant amount of coverage and protest this February. Of course, even with that infamous clause removed, H.R. 3 aims to deprive people of Medicaid funding for abortions, meaning that it aims to deprive poor women of abortions, meaning that it targets specifically the most vulnerable people within the population. And good news for those of us in the middle: If you are lucky enough to have insurance, H.R. 3 will also prohibit your insurance company from covering your abortion. So, hurrah! All will be delightfully well-oppressed.

The most upsetting thing about H.R. 3, however, is the fact that it passed the House on May 4. And how it passed: On a 251-to-175 vote. Every single Republican present voted for it. And so did 16 Democrats.

Which is why those pro-life Democrats stick out. In a House that was already going to pass the measure, against a united and determined Republican anti-choice strategy, they added sixteen unnecessary voices of support. The question of why why such a thing as a pro-life Democrat even exists gets more terrifying the more closely you consider it.

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What Is Your Analysis Of This Vote

What trends do you see in this vote?

Members of Congress side together for many reasons beside being in the same political party, especially so for less prominent legislation or legislation specific to a certain region. What might have determined how the roll call came out in this case? Does it look like Members of Congress voted based on party, geography, or some other reason?

One tool that will be helpful in answering this question is the cartogram at the top of the page. A cartogram is a stylized map of the United States that shows each district as an identical hexagon. This view allows you to see the how the representatives from each district voted arranged by their geography and colored by their political party. What trends can you see in the cartogram for this vote?

How did your representative vote?

There is one vote here that should be more important to you than all the others. These are the votes cast by your representative, which is meant to represent you and your community. Do you agree with how your representative voted? Why do you think they voted the way they did?

If you dont already know who your Members of Congress are you can find them by entering your address here.

Each votes study guide is a little different we automatically choose which questions to include based on the information we have available about the vote.Study guides are a new feature to GovTrack. You can help us improve them by filling out this survey or by sending your feedback to .

Theres Two Approaches To Drug Pricing Reform And Both Are Stalled

The House bill H.R.3 has a few mechanisms for reducing prescription drug prices, but most notably, it would allow the US health department to directly negotiate the prices it will pay for up to 250 drugs every year. The Congressional Budget Office has estimated the bill would save Medicare up to $450 billion over 10 years because of those new negotiating powers. CBO has also projected about eight fewer drugs would come to the market in the next decade because of the decrease in revenues for drug makers.

Despite Trumps promises on the 2016 campaign trail that he would support proposals allowing Medicare drug negotiations, the White House threatened to veto the House plan. They called it a plan to institute government price controls, and said it would limit access to medicine, a favored talking point of the pharmaceutical lobby.

Even without this veto threat, H.R.3 is expected to be dead-on-arrival in the Senate. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has shown no interest in taking up the bill. It did, however, garner some small measure of bipartisan support although Trump has thrown the weight of the White House against the bill, it did receive two House Republican votes in December.

Instead, Trump has aligned himself more with Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley, who has advanced a narrower set of reforms from his perch as the Senate Finance Committee chair.

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How Many Votes Do Republicans Need To Repeal Obamacare

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How Many Votes Do Republicans Need To Repeal Obamacare

Schumer: ‘we Can Work Together Our Country Demands It’

Senate Republicans fail to get necessary votes to repeal and replace Obamacare

Until the end, passage on the Health Care Freedom Act, also dubbed the skinny repeal, was never certain. Even Republicans who voted for it disliked the bill.

The skinny bill as policy is a disaster. The skinny bill as a replacement for Obamacare is a fraud. The skinny bill is a vehicle to getting conference to find a replacement, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said at a Thursday evening news conference hours before the vote alongside fellow Republicans McCain, Ron Johnson and Bill Cassidy, before the details were released.

The skinny repeal was far from Republicans campaign promise of also rolling back Medicaid expansion, insurance subsidies, Obamacare taxes, and insurance regulations.

Many Republicans who did vote for it said they were holding their nose to vote for it just to advance the process into negotiations with the House of Representatives.

The legislation included a repeal of the individual mandate to purchase insurance, a repeal of the employer mandate to provide insurance, a one-year defunding of Planned Parenthood, a provision giving states more flexibility to opt out of insurance regulations, and a three-year repeal of the medical device tax. It also would have increased the amount that people can contribute to Health Savings Accounts.

Leigh Ann Caldwell is an NBC News correspondent.

Kevin Mccarthy: Republicans Can Repeal Obamacare Before Replacing It

House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy said Tuesday that Republicans could repeal Obamacare before finding a replacement for it, according to the Hill.

I dont think you have to wait, McCarthy told reporters. My personal belief, and nothings been decided yet, but I would move through and repeal and then go to work on replacing.

But healthcare experts, including some Republicans, say this approach could cause chaos for Obamacare enrollees and the insurance market during that period of time between the repeal of the law and when a replacement is found.

McCarthy and others have called for a transition period where Obamacare would be phased out gradually over a period of two years or another specified period of time after a repeal of the law is passed.

Even so, critics have said that insurers could leave the system once they know the law is being phased out, leaving no options for those enrolled in Obamacare for 2018.

Insurers have already left the exchanges in some states, leaving people with only one insurer to choose from when purchasing plans on the exchange.

The task of repealing and replacing Obamacare at the same time, however, could prove difficult for Republicans.

They need just 50 votes in the Senate to repeal the core of the healthcare law, but they need 60 votes in the Senate to pass a replacement to the law, which means the replacement would have to have support from Democrats as well as Republicans.

What We Learned In The House: Support For A Repeal Bill Can Happen Quickly

One lesson Ive taken from the past year of covering the Obamacare repeal-and-replace debate is that these bills look doomed to fail up until the moment they dont.

Take, for example, the American Health Care Act that the House passed this May. Within 48 hours, the bill went from doomed to sailing right through. The most puzzling part was how little happened in between.

Moderate Republicans like Rep. Fred Upton were critical of the bill because of how it could affect Americans with preexisting conditions. Upton publicly came out against the Obamacare repeal bill on May 2 in an interview with a local radio station. But literally the next day, he announced that a small tweak to the bill would win his support.

The tweaks didnt actually fix the core problems that Upton had with the bill. He secured a small pot of funding to help those with preexisting conditions and used that as cover to vote for a bill that would cause 22 million Americans to lose coverage.

Other Republicans quickly fell in line behind Upton, even though no major changes were made to quell their concerns, and the American Health Care Act passed the House on May 4.

Of course, some Republican plans that look doomed are, in fact, doomed. But at this stage, its really hard to tell the difference. Sometimes, as we saw in the House, a small amendment can make all the difference in flipping the key no votes to yes. Sometimes, as weve seen in the Senate, the votes just arent there.

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Trumps Executive Action Could Erode Marketplace Built Under Obamacare

Attempts to repeal portions of the Affordable Care Act have failed in the past several months, leading President Donald Trump to issue an executive order expanding access to cheaper, less comprehensive health care plans.

The order, signed on Oct. 12, instructs federal agencies to remove certain limitations on “association health plans” and expand the availability of short-term health plans, both of which can skirt certain minimum coverage requirements included in the Affordable Care Act and state laws.

These changes will not immediately take effect; federal agencies will have to figure out how to act on Trump’s directions.

The executive action orders agencies to explore ways in which the government can expand access to short-term health plans, which are available to individuals on a three-month basis and meant for people who are in-between health care coverage plans. Under the instructions, association health plans would be allowed to sell plans across state lines; those plans allow small businesses to band together to create cheaper health care plans that offer fewer benefits.

The order was intended to create more options for individuals seeking health insurance and help stimulate competition among insurers. Some health policy advocates worry that it could disrupt the insurance marketplace in a way that would drive up health care costs for elderly individuals and people with medical conditions.

It will be months before changes are seen in the marketplace.

Likely To Vote No: 1 Senate Republican

Alaskas Lisa Murkowski also voted against all three versions of repeal in July, criticizing what she viewed as an overly secretive and partisan process to write the various bills and raising concerns about the Medicaid cuts. She has not slammed the GOP repeal effort as aggressively as Collins, but she does not sound especially inclined to back Cassidy-Graham.

So if Collins and Murkowski are no votes, Republicans need all four members below to vote yes.

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Senate Gop Tries One Last Time To Repeal Obamacare

McConnell and his lieutenants will gauge support for the bill this week in private party meetings.

By BURGESS EVERETT and JOSH DAWSEY

09/17/2017 02:51 PM EDT

Republicans say Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell wont bring up the bill if there is any chance of failure, given the dramatic collapse in the summer. | john Shinkle/POLITICO

Obamacare repeal is on the brink of coming back from the dead.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and his leadership team are seriously considering voting on a bill that would scale back the federal governments role in the health care system and instead provide block grants to states, congressional and Trump administration sources said.

It would be a last-ditch attempt to repeal Obamacare before the GOPs power to pass health care legislation through a party-line vote in the Senate expires on Sept. 30.

No final decision has been made, but the GOP leader has told his caucus that if the bill written by Sens. Lindsey Graham and Bill Cassidy has the support of at least 50 of the 52 GOP senators, he will bring it to the floor, Graham and Cassidy say. That would give Republicans one more crack at repealing the Affordable Care Act, a longtime party pledge.

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Some Republicans believe that if the bill were put on the floor Monday, it would have the support of 49 senators.

Obama: Gop Blocked 500 Bills

President Barack Obama is railing against congressional Republicans, telling a Hollywood crowd that the midterm elections are crucial because the GOP is willing to say no to everything.

The president, speaking at a Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee event Wednesday evening hosted at Walt Disney Studios Chairman Alan Horns home, said Republicans have been obstructionist since even before he took office.

Their willingness to say no to everything the fact that since 2007, they have filibustered about 500 pieces of legislation that would help the middle class just gives you a sense of how opposed they are to any progress has actually led to an increase in cynicism and discouragement among the people who were counting on us to fight for them, Obama said of Republicans.

The conclusion is, well, nothing works, the president continued. And the problem is, is that for the folks worth fighting for for the person whos cleaning up that house or hotel, for the guy who used to work on construction but now has been laid off they need us. Not because they want a handout, but because they know that government can serve an important function in unleashing the power of our private sector.

Obama opened by saying that he is in trouble at home, because in 2012 he had told his wife, first lady Michelle Obama, that he had run his last campaign.

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Wild Cards: 4 Senate Republicans

Utahs Mike Lee and Kentuckys Rand Paul have been continual roadblocks for Republicans during the repeal process, fighting it from the right and essentially opposing any legislation that leaves Obamacares rules and regulations in place. Lee has been noncommittal about Cassidy-Graham. But Paul has attacked it, arguing that it still gives states the choice and ability to effectively leave Obamacare in place. He sounds like a hard no right now, but Im skeptical he would cast the vote to block an Obamacare repeal bill. The reason: Paul has cultivated a brand as a strong conservative, so a vote that would, in effect, save Obamacare would not be ideal for him.

Kansass Jerry Moran, meanwhile, has been a vocal defender of Medicaid, so its not clear if he would back a bill that cuts Medicaid as much as Graham-Cassidy does.

McCain, for his part, was a key vote against Obamacare repeal in July and it seemed like a capstone to the Arizona senators career as a self-described maverick. He urged Republicans just this Sunday not to engage in a hurried process that skips over the relevant committees and doesnt include Democrats. Cassidy-Graham is being rushed, hasnt gone through the committees for hearings and has no Democratic support.

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Gop Has A Month To Pass Obamacare Repeal With 51

Republicans vote to repeal Obamacare

If Republicans want to try again to repeal the Affordable Care Act with just a simple majority, they only have until the end of September to do it.

Thats according to Sen. Bernie Sanders, the ranking member on the Senates budget committee. According to Sanders, the Senate parliamentarian declared Friday that the Senates 2017 budget resolution, which gave reconciliation instructions to repeal Obamacare, will expire at the end of the month.

That means that Republican senators will either have to pass a new budget to repeal health care with a simple majority or they will have to have 60 votes a filibuster-proof majority to make changes to Obamacare.

The parliamentarians office declined to comment to CNN, saying its policy was not to speak with the media. CNN has reached out to Republicans on the Senate budget committee about whether they agree with Sanders assessment.

Todays determination by the Senate parliamentarian is a major victory for the American people and everyone who fought against President Trumps attempt to take away health care from up to 32 million people, Sanders said in a statement. Now that the parliamentarian has determined that Senate Republicans cannot use reconciliation instructions to repeal the Affordable Care Act beyond this fiscal year, we need to work together to expand, not cut, health care for millions of Americans who desperately need it.

CNNs Manu Raju and Ted Barrett contributed to this report.

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Trumps Promise To Repeal Obamacare Is Now In Limbo

President Donald Trump expressed disappointment after Republican lawmakers’ failure to muster enough votes to repeal Obamacare placed one of his loftiest campaign promises in limbo.

A series of defections by Senate Republicans scuttled two separate efforts to dismantle the sweeping U.S. health care law put in place by Trump’s predecessor, President Barack Obama.

“We’ve had a lot of victories, but we haven’t had a victory on health care,” Trump told reporters July 18, as it became clear the latest Republican legislative efforts would fail. “We’re disappointed.”

A slim margin of error constrained GOP efforts to repeal and replace Obamacare and forced a delicate balancing act between the party’s conservative and moderate members.

But defections by Sens. Jerry Moran of Kansas and Mike Lee of Utah on July 17 brought to four the number of Republican senators to publicly oppose the bill , effectively killing the repeal-and-replace plan. Senate leadership could only afford to lose two Republican votes for passage.

Senate Republicans then turned their attention to a measure that would repeal major parts of Obamacare over two years, in theory buying lawmakers enough time to agree on a replacement plan before the Affordable Care Act, often called Obamacare, was largely dismantled.

“I did not come to Washington to hurt people,” Capito said in a statement. “I cannot vote to repeal Obamacare without a replacement plan that addresses my concerns and the needs of West Virginians.”

Gop Aims To Kill Obamacare Yet Again After Failing 70 Times

Chris Riotta U.S.Donald TrumpAffordable Care ActObamacare

The GOP may be down for the count in it’s failed attempts to repeal and replace former President Barack Obama’s Affordable Care Actbut don’t count Lindsey Graham out just yet.

President Donald Trump met with the South Carolina senator and one of his fiercest critics in the Republican party on Friday night to discuss a bill that would effectively block Obamacare funding, according to two sources familiar with the meeting and legislation currently being drafted. Republican officials tell Politico Graham’s bill could potentially reach 50 votes after a series of failed attempts in recent weeks to both repeal and replace, then simply repeal, Obama’s landmark health care initiative.

After last week’s latest attempt to remove provisions of Obamacare ended with Sen. John McCain’s dramatic “no” vote effectively keeping it alive along with two other senators, Newsweek has found at least 70 Republican-led attempts to repeal, modify or otherwise curb the Affordable Care Act since its inception as law on March 23, 2010.

“I had a great meeting with the President and know he remains fully committed to repealing and replacing Obamacare,” Graham said in a statement Friday night. “President Trump was optimistic about the Graham-Cassidy-Heller proposal. I will continue to work with President Trump and his team to move the idea forward.”

How many more times that may take, is anyone’s guess.

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Analysts expect the bill would lead to millions of Americans losing coverage, similar to previous Republican repeal bills. Republicans might not even know the full extent of the new bills effects on the health care system because they are likely to vote on the bill before the Congressional Budget Office can release its full analysis. The CBO is rushing to at least a provide a bare-bones analysis by early next week. The Senate has now scheduled two hearings for Monday and Tuesday on the bill.

Senate Republicans need 50 votes to pass this bill, meaning only two Republicans can defect. As my colleague Dylan Scott has pointed out, Republicans always have 45 or so votes to repeal Obamacare. Its the last five that are the battleground.

Several senators who opposed the last Obamacare repeal effort havent taken an official position yet. So the vote could fail just like past Republican attempts. But all signs we have from Capitol Hill suggest that it could pass. Cassidy is actively working to persuade senators to vote for the bill and reaching out to governors, too, to pressure their senators.

Ive had governors calling up their senators, 14 or 15 governors, saying you need to get on this, Cassidy told reporters at a Friday morning briefing.

Gop Health Care Bill Would Cut About $765 Billion In Taxes Over 10 Years

But sentiment has changed on Obamacare, with Gallup Poll finding this month that 55 percent now approve of the ACA.

The AHCA faces a much tougher road in the Senate, and if it dies there, some of those vulnerable GOP members may have made what ends up being a futile vote.

But there’s another side to consider, too. For Republicans who have made the refrain “repeal and replace Obamacare” their mantra for seven years now, not acting on their signature campaign promise could risk depleting enthusiasm among their core voters, who they also need to turn out in November 2018 to combat a Democratic base that is energized against President Trump.

And after the first attempt at repeal failed in an embarrassing fashion, House Republicans and Trump badly needed a win. That’s why they took a victory lap in the White House Rose Garden on Thursday afternoon, even though the bill is far from becoming law.

“The American people expected us to deliver on the promises we’ve made and that’s what House Republicans have just done,” National Republican Congressional Committee communications director Matt Gorman wrote in a memo after the vote.

Republicans have pointed out that more insurance companies are pulling out of state-run exchanges, and the GOP bill will cut about $765 billion in taxes over the next decade, NPR’s Scott Horsley reported, though mostly for wealthy Americans.

Thank you @RepMimiWalters and for standing in front!

Meredith Kelly May 4, 2017

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