You can't have a two-track process, I argued, where the party tries to stabilize the markets in one set of negotiations, while tearing down the whole system in another.
And now, Alexander has pulled the rug out from under that process. What does that mean?
It means two things. First, it means that the primary obstacle to Graham-Cassidy now is who I said yesterday: Elizabeth MacDonough, the Senate parliamentarian. Graham-Cassidy lets states ask for waivers to the Obamacare regulations on pre-existing conditions. What the fuck does that have to do with taxation or spending? Directly, nothing, and that makes it a stretch to be kosher under the "Byrd rule," so there is a real chance MacDonough will say it won't pass muster under the Byrd rule, in which case the whole thing is eligible for a Democratic filibuster, and this is just a joke. She did that with the previous attempt at a replacement bill, and I'm not sure how Graham-Cassidy gets past MacDonough, who is the biggest obstacle here. Graham and Cassidy could get Collins, Murkowski and seven Democrats, but if they don't get MacDonough, it doesn't fucking matter. (And no, Lindsey, no Democrat will be even remotely tempted to vote for your bill...)
Elizabeth Fucking MacDonough. Know the name.
The other thing is the other point I made in that earlier post about what looked like some strange shoots of bipartisanship. I ended the post with, "I gotta think about that..."
Well, with time to think and observe, never mind. Trump was just being Trump-y on the debt ceiling, and Alexander's taste of bipartisanship was like a kid tasting "baking chocolate." Oooo! I found a chocolate bar! Let's just unwrap this and... AHHHHHHH!!!!! I need something sweet, like an OBAMACARE REPEAL vote! What is that thing?! KILL IT WITH FIRE!!!!!!
Yeah. No more of that bipartisanship stuff. Those people had me worried that my models might stop working, but at least I don't have to worry about that.