Indictment May Blow Hole In Trump's Big Week
Looming indictment threatens Trump's big week. Politico: "An expected indictment Monday from the special counsel probing Russia’s meddling in the 2016 election leaves President Donald Trump facing a politically perilous week as his White House juggles unveiling significant tax legislation, announcing its pick for Federal Reserve chair and launching a 12-day-long foreign trip. Administration allies scrambled over the weekend to downplay the significance of the expected revelation of the first charges in special counsel Robert Mueller’s probe... Trump, however, seemed to be struggling to stay focused on what was already shaping up to be a momentous week on the policy front, tweeting his frustration repeatedly on Sunday... House Republicans still plan to release a draft of their tax bill this week, a senior White House official and a top GOP Capitol Hill aide told POLITICO, hoping to deliver on Trump’s top legislative priority — one that Republicans increasingly see as a must-pass in order to avoid 2018 midterm losses... the roll-out strategy remained as it did before the indictment news broke, the White House official said... 'People are looking to do tax reform for their own reasons, they’re not doing it to help the administration.'"
GOP Sticks To Plan For Tax Blitz
"GOP Plan for a Speedy Tax Overhaul Faces Uncertain Road. WSJ: "The plan is to keep the tough trade-offs in the bill secret until after Halloween, then reach Thanksgiving with bills passed by the House and Senate and hit New Year's Day with a bill on Mr. Trump's desk. That's close to financial-crisis speed, pushing Congress into a kind of emergency lawmaking mode it typically uses only when inaction means cataclysm... There are three possible paths forward: A rousing victory for Republicans, a scaled-back compromise or collapse. Consider it even odds right now for any of these scenarios."
States Face Child Health Crisis
States running out of cash for children's health insurance. The Hill: "Uncertainty about the future of an insurance program for children is sparking panic at the state level as officials scramble to keep their coverage going. Federal funding for the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) expired a month ago, and states are dipping into unspent money or asking for help from the Trump administration to maintain coverage until Congress reaches a deal to extend it... State officials in Colorado and Utah told The Hill they could send out notices to enrollees warning about possible changes in coverage as soon as November. In Washington state and Virginia, notices will be sent out Dec. 1 if Congress doesn’t act. Meanwhile, five states and Washington, D.C., are estimating they could run out of funds by the end of this year or early January, according to a report from Georgetown’s Center for Children and Families. Arizona expects its funds to last through November or December, while Minnesota currently has enough to last through next month. California has enough funding to last through late December or early January, while Ohio and Oregon expect to run out in December."
White Nationalists Rally, Fade In TN
White nationalists met by counterprotesters cancel second rally in TN. CNN: "White nationalists groups that rallied Saturday in Shelbyville, Tennessee, were met by a large police presence and dozens of shouting counterprotesters. Hours later, a second rally planned in nearby Murfreesboro was canceled. The demonstrations, which organizers called the "White Lives Matter" rally, were planned by The League of the South, a Southern nationalist group, according to Brad Griffin, the organization's public relations chief. Other extreme-right and neo-Nazi groups joined them in the protests wearing black and bearing helmets and shields. The groups had planned to start at Shelbyville and then head to Murfreesboro about 20 miles to the north, but the Murfreesboro rally was canceled, Griffin said. About 800 to 1,000 counterprotesters had gathered in Murfreesboro to oppose the demonstrations."
More from OurFuture.org:
GOP Smash-And-Burn Tax Plan Does Nothing for Workers. Leo Gerard: "To pay for their red-ribbon wrapped gift box for the uber-wealthy, Republicans are smashing and burning $5 trillion in programs cherished by workers, including Medicare and Medicaid. This is not tax reform; it's tax deform."
