California Dreamin' (Of November In '18)

Sarah Wire at the LA Times reminds us that every single member of California's House GOP delegation voted for Trumpcare 3.0, and if there's any place where Dems can pick up districts that weren't in play before the vote, the Golden State is ripe with opportunity for Team Blue next November.

More than half of the Golden State’s Republicans were among the members who were leery of the bill when it was changed to accommodate the far-right Freedom Caucus, including allowing states to scrap protections for people with preexisting conditions. But an amendment that added $8 billion to offset insurance costs for some people with preexisting conditions appears to have swayed some of the holdouts, including Rep. Jeff Denham (R-Turlock), who earlier this week said he would vote against the bill.

House Republican leaders, including House Majority Leader Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Bakersfield), insist the bill will still cover people with preexisting conditions such as asthma, pregnancy or cancer. Conditions such as those were used by insurance companies to deny coverage prior to Obamacare, also known as the Affordable Care Act. But most healthcare experts and patient advocates dispute that. The House did not wait for an official report from the Congressional Budget Office on how much the bill would cost or how it would affect Americans.

New tax credits created under the bill could not be spent on any policy that covers abortions, which will significantly affect any Californian who receives federal assistance to pay for insurance. Under California law, all insurance policies offered in the state must include abortion coverage.

As expected, all 39 California House Democrats voted against the bill.

Seven of the 14 Republicans in California’s delegation represent districts that picked Hillary Clinton for president in November, and Democrats have already announced they will focus on winning those seats.

Democrats are expected to lambaste their Republican colleagues in the 2018 midterm election for supporting the bill, just as Republicans did to win a wave of seats after the Affordable Care Act passed.

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) opened with a warning during a Thursday morning news conference. "Most people don't even know who their congressperson is in many places. And now they'll find out. They will find out that their congressperson voted to take away their healthcare," she told reporters before the vote.

By the way, those seven Republicans (in order of largest Clinton margin to smallest):

• David Valadao (CA-21, Hanford)
• Ed Royce (CA-39, Fullerton)
• Darrell Issa (CA-49, Oceanside)
• Steve Knight (CA-25, Palmdale)
• Mimi Walters (CA-45, Irvine)
• Jeff Denham (CA-10, Modesto)
• Dana Rohrabacher (CA-48, Costa Mesa)

Getting rid of Issa (the wealthiest person in Congress by far, worth a quarter-billion plus!) has to be the top target of California Dems, with Rohrabacher a close second.  Let's help make this happen, guys.  I know I have more than a few readers on the West Coast, if not in and around these districts, so let's go get some seats back.