TrumpCare will drive up costs for middle-class families, strip health care insurance from 15 million people next year and 22 million people by 2026, leave people with pre-existing conditions unprotected, and puts essential health benefits in jeopardy.

MADISON - The following is the statement of Democratic Party of Wisconsin Chair Martha Laning with regards to the Congressional Budget Office's (CBO) score of the Senate Trumpcare bill released today:

"The CBO score released today confirms that Trumpcare will only spell disaster for the American people. It will drive up costs for middle-class families, strip health care insurance from 15 million people next year - and 22 million people by 2026, leave people with pre-existing conditions unprotected, and puts essential health benefits like maternity care, opioid treatment, and mental health services in jeopardy. The only people who stand to gain from Trumpcare are the millionaires, billionaires, and corporations who will receive billions of dollars in tax giveaways.

"Republicans like Governor Scott Walker and Senator Ron Johnson don't think this bill goes far enough. They want even deeper cuts to Medicaid which would result in even more Wisconsinites cut off from care and would cost taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars down the road.

"Democrats fought tooth-and-nail to pass the Affordable Care Act because health care is a right for all Americans, not a privilege for just the wealthy. The ACA insured millions of Americans, we should be looking to build on the ACA and expand health coverage for even more people in our country. We've made progress and we can't stop now. Wisconsin Democrats will continue fighting to protect health care for working people and the most vulnerable Wisconsinites in our state."

Duffy told Fox News host Martha MacCallum "And my concern, Martha, is what the hell are we investigating?"

MADISON - As Attorney General Jeff Sessions begins to testify to rebut the testimony of former FBI Director James Comey, Rep. Sean Duffy doesn't seem to know what the Department of Justice is investigating in the first place. 

During an interview with Fox News, Rep. Sean Duffy told host Martha MacCallum "And my concern, Martha, is what the hell are we investigating?" In the same interview, Duffy also asked, “Why are we going through this charade of an investigation when there’s no evidence that Donald Trump had anything to do with the Russians?”

Interviews in Washington D.C. with Van Jones, Pramila Jayapal, and Ai-jen Poo at the People’s Action Founding Convention.

MILWAUKEE - This week we have a special edition of the Battleground Wisconsin Podcast featuring exclusive interviews with 3 rising progressive leaders who have unique perspectives on how to build the political power to achieve the full promise of American life. The interviews were recorded this week in Washington, D.C. at the People’s Action Founding Convention.

The interviews include: (1) Van Jones, a globally recognized, award-winning pioneer in human rights and the clean-energy economy. He served as a special advisor to the Obama White House and is currently a political contributor on CNN. (2) Pramila Jayapal, a newly elected Congresswoman from the state of Washington who had already made a huge splash on the national scene. She is an Indian immigrant who came to America when she was 16. Pramila attributes her election to her bold, progressive agenda and not being afraid to stand up to corporate and special interests. 3) Ai-jen Poo, Director of the National Domestic Workers Alliance and the Co-director of the Caring Across Generations Campaign. Ai-Jen is considered one of the top progressive strategists in America. She has been organizing immigrant women workers for over two decades, forging pathways to sustainable quality jobs for the caregiving workforce and fighting to guarantee access to affordable care for the nation’s aging populations.

Rep. Duffy outburst reveals fear of government control overrides public good.

ANTIGO, WI - In an emotional outburst at a town hall meeting yesterday in Antigo, Congressman Sean Duffy said much more than he intended about why conservative politicians who control the House of Representatives are reneging on their campaign promise to make health coverage more affordable and accessible.

At the town hall meeting, which was dominated by questions about the unsuccessful attempt to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA), Dora Gorski asked Duffy to support a single payer health care system to reduce costs and to guarantee health coverage to every American.

As was reported by Wisconsin Public Radio, Duffy responded with an emotional harangue:

"I would argue, 'Hell no,' to that. When the government controls your education, they control your food, they control your housing, they control your health care, they control you."

Audio of the exchange here.

Citizen Action of Wisconsin Executive Director Robert Kraig made the following statement in response:

“Congressman Duffy’s outburst unintentionally reveals a dangerously constricted view of government that if fulfilled would eliminate Medicare and BadgerCare, which are single payer systems, and would abolish public schools. By stating this anti-government extremism plainly, Duffy has actually helped explain why the conservative majority in the House of Representatives delivered a health care bill which forces 24 million people off health care and legalizes discrimination against people with pre-existing conditions. The modern conservative drive to radically limit the role of our democracy is incompatible with guaranteeing that everyone in America has somewhere to go to get health care no matter what. Insurance and pharmaceutical corporations are not in the business of securing affordable health care, they are driven by profit imperatives dictated by Wall Street. That’s why insurance companies will deny coverage to sick people and pharmaceutical corporations will price gouge if we let them. It is a simple truth that only “we the people, through the agency of our own democratic government, can guarantee health care to everyone in America.”

Millions of Americans, including 49,300 in the Fox Valley/Green Bay area and nearly 240,000 statewide in Wisconsin Congressional districts held by Republicans could be harmed by ill conceived American Healthcare Act.

MADISON - Before the Affordable Care Act, millions of Americans lacked access to quality, affordable health insurance, and even those who did have coverage had little protection against insurance company abuses. It seems that Wisconsin's Republican members of Congress want to drag us back to the dark age before President Obama's landmark legislation. 

Tomorrow, the House is expected to vote on the widely-panned Republican Wealthcare bill, led by Rep. Paul Ryan, that kicks 24 million Americans off of their health insurance and forks over huge tax giveaways to insurance companies and the super-wealthy.

For some, the bill isn't bad enough, Rep. Grothman recently introduced an amendment to unfairly kick 26-year-olds off their parent's health care insurance, only allowing them to stay on their parent's plans until age 23. 

For others, like Rep. Sean Duffy, cajoling their colleagues for tomorrow's vote is more important than ensuring health care for those in his district who need it the most. 

Even those who have heard opposition to the proposal from their constituents are choosing to simply ignore them, like Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner and Rep. Mike Gallagher, who both still plan to vote for the Wealthcare bill tomorrow.  

Even Koch-brothers darling and 'repeal and replace' candidate, Sen. Ron Johnson, opposes the House's Wealthcare proposal. Johnson recently told reporters that “skeptical” was an “understatement” in describing his attitude toward the plan.