re: Senate Parliamentarian rules that multiple BCRA provisions violate Byrd rule

quote:

---

because it's essentially the nuclear option by another name

---

That's a stretch. In any case, the GOP seems like it can't get to 50 votes on anything. They need to completely forget about tax reform and focus entirely on health care until they get something done about insurance mandates and essential benefits. Time is working against them right now, and this Trump-Russia thing is a slow moving lava flow that is soon going to destroy everything in its wake.

Not only that, but the GOP also seems to be losing the white women's vote on health care issues and how the whole debate is being framed. Trump isn't helping because he doesn't understand the issues well enough to get ahead and lead the framing.

There was an article in The Atlantic showing that white women without college degrees voted 63-35 for Republicans over Democrats in the 2016 elections (including 61% for Trump), but their support for Trump has plummeted by 19% to 42% for Trump.

A recent Sabato's Crystal Ball report predicts a the Republicans losing close to 30 seats in the House in 2018 (assuming generic party Congressional ballots hold constant).

I'm not optimistic on getting out a moral message to the poor, uneducated moms and grandmoms of America that big government health care is bad for them and their kids... even though it is.

The 2018 elections were the perfect setup for the Republicans to get close to 60 seats in the Senate (the first time over 55 seats since 1922). Now everything seems to be slipping quickly out of their grasps. If they don't repeal ObamaCare within the next year, they're done as a party. If they need to go nuclear and bribe everyone to get it done, then so be it. This will be their last shot.