November 11, 2019
Federal Items:
Donald J. Trump is the one true God, the eternal source of truth.
Not all Republicans have yet adopted this prayer but the fate of any elected GOPer who does not accept Trump supremacy is brief and fiery. The impeachment inquiry is increasing pressure on members of Congress to support Trump, despite evidence or conscience.
While some in Congress talk of a short-term (two or three month) patch on government spending, it is still possible the federal government will shutdown on November 21st. (Congress has made little progress on the 12 core appropriations bills needed to maintain operations this Fiscal Year.)
Two obstacles: the House only plans to meet on seven days before the shutdown deadline, and, Trump has not indicated he will support any plan which doesn’t give him billions more for wall construction.
While Congress remains in partisan deadlock, the administration is taking steps everyday to permanently change how the national government operates. For example:
► EPA – reversing decades of rule making – is in the process of allowing coal burning power plants
to emit more arsenic, lead and mercury into drinking water.
► Candidates for lifetime appointment to federal judgeships with not qualified ratings from the bar
association are still being put-up (sometimes more than once) for Senate confirmation.
► The education department is forcing more students who owe loans for out-of-business for-profit
schools to pay all or most of their student loan balances. (Under Obama the failure of the school
or the lack of qualification for employment was grounds for debt relief.)
► The administration has hired a ‘Prosperity Gospel’ televangelist Pastor, Paula While. “Her role will be to advise the administration’s Faith and Opportunity Initiative.” [ NY Times]
State Items:
Missouri is getting a lot of national and international press – for a bad reason.
Missouri’s director of Health and Senior Services, Dr. Randall Williams, had used confidential information from Planned Parenthood patient files to track the menstrual cycle history of women seeking abortions. The state is spending millions of tax dollars to challenge the operation permit for Missouri’s last remaining abortion clinic, and, the state has expressed a desire to permanently bar Planned Parenthood from receiving any government money for any health care services.
State revenue is tracking ahead of projections. Individual Income Tax receipts are up a bit but the big move has come from higher collections of Corporate Taxes – fallout from Trump’s tax changes. The extra money won’t result in more money for schools, roads nor healthcare but it will allow the state to replenish its reserves.
The number of Missourians on Medicaid continues to trend down: in September, 12,000 kids lost care.
Glenn Koenen