I'll take a moment to correct Charlie Sykes
I'm watching Deadline White House while enjoying my first meal of the day (I'm on the West Coast). The lead-off is Jaba the Putz's Big Butt Ugly Bill. Cornell Belcher is praising Democrats for the strategy of their opposition in light of their limited power (nice to hear someone not shitting on Democrats these days). Belcher points to how highly unpopular the bill is. Charlie Sykes, perhaps with a little condescension and some respect rebuts Belcher by suggesting that Jaba has the bully pulpit to trumpet the bill and lie about what's in it after it passes. He thinks this leaves open the possibility of the bill becoming more popular.
Let me respectfully condescend to Charlie for a moment. Those of us who chose the right party to begin with may be a little better at spotting trends and behavior. Opinions on bills that are unpopular don't shift readily at all. Negative opinions on bills become baked in very quickly. The Putz could lie his ass off about the bill, but it won't readily change anything.
We all remember what a big fucking deal the Affordable Care Act was. We remember it actually EXPANDED health coverage to folks from young people to people suffering from black lung disease and everyone in between. And for some reason people hated it at its passing. When Democrats lost the House in the following midterms the ACA was blamed.
The Putz's bill actually REDUCES coverage in a way that will be visible to just about every family somehow. How the fuck does Charlie Sykes think lying about this bill will turn people around? My only caveat to myself is that black lung disease sufferers who relied on the Affordable Care Act, which Jaba campaigned on dismantling, largely voted for Jaba - and then panicked when he tried to dismantle the ACA.
Regardless, I think the opinion of this bill has less chance of swinging positive than the ACA. But thanks for playing Charlie.