"Doing nothing would've been better."

Total nonsense.

The decade before the ACA, inflation was 31%, while medical inflation was 131%, more than four times the inflation rate. The trajectory was scaring heath insurance committees and Trustees to death. I know: I served on the committee (and eventually as a Trustee) and we were scared schitttless.

We were also on the cusp of giant swaths of Americans being tossed into high-risk pools due to pre-existing conditions.

The year before the ACA, my wife's best pal and her husband got tossed into a high-risk pool after she survived breast cancer. He'd lost his corporate insurance when he had to take so much time to care for her. Their rate was $5000 a month, when the COBRA rate was ~$500/mo.

"Doing nothing" would've been disastrous. And cowardly.

"Then why didn't Obama do that instead of ACA?"

Because it wouldn't have passed.

ACA barely passed; Single Payer would've added a dozen new groups against it, including every high-earning professional who got a higher quality plan through work.

Plans like M4A fall in the 70th-80th percentile. That's a lot of folks who would be asked to take lower quality healthcare.

For the same price, of course!

"he also gets a sense of power by his ability to hurt people "

Don't forget being VERY afraid of powerful women, especially ones who dare to ask questions.

"It makes sense to criticize him for doing it in the first place, but not for backtracking on it."

It also makes sense to point out he wouldn't've had to backtrack if he hadn't been an idiot in the first place.

See: Attacking Iran without realizing they'd close the Strait of Hormuz.

" so he can park it in his presidential library"

Don't kid yourself: it's about the nine-figure tax deduction for the "donation".

"less than the general population which is around 5-20%."

At one time???

"how is this "major"?"

Actual Math.

And the lack of a flu shot mandate.

How do you not understand that 160 getting the flu at the same outpost isn't typical?!?

Here's what should piss EVERYONE off about Cassidy:

If he'd won his recent primary, he would've felt the same way, but NOT SPOKEN UP.

That's the behavior of a coward.

This might be a good time to recall the "You can't overdose on ivermectin!" guy.

He died of an ivermectin overdose..

His parents' response? To continue the website.

Can't afford to give up the grift, don'cha know....

"So crypto is supposed to be a completely unregulated alternative to federal banks, but he wants his crypto to be treated like a federal bank, but not regulated like a federal bank."

Yep.

With investment "money" based on the Bigger Fool theory.

What could possibly go wrong???

"GOP senator:..."

Cassidy was an Always-Trumper every time a vote came up. Now that he's been primaried for not participating in the central lies...

..he can "speak his mind".

IOW, he's a full-fledged coward, who was afraid to come forward when it actually mattered.

Effffff him.

"...here in Germany, there are civil infractions that will get me booted out of the country."

Based on the accusation alone? Or are you afforded some form of Due Process?

"She literally did."

Then you're watching doctored video.

Frame-by-frame proves she was moving AWAY from the cop when the shots were fired. It also proves the officer violated multiple protocols, including firing at a car moving away from him, and firing when there were innocents downrange.

" My guess is that, in the US, you have a significant bloc of the population that is open to allowing illegal immigration."

Yeah.

They're called hirers.

"I don't know of any country in the world you can enter illegally but get to stay once you enter."

And do those countries simply send you home, or do they send you to a third-world hellhole?

Tangential question: do you get a legal hearing first, or is an accusation enough, like it is in the USA?

A losing proposition that'll cost us over a trillion dollars, when all is said and done?!?

THAT's a WIN!

...if you use Republican Math!

"Spread: Talarico +0.6"

A spread that small will come down to who's counting the ballots.

" Without turning a calculator on. I'm guessing I'd be around 13-15 years before I realize a gain on panels that will be slowing considerably"

Two things: a lot of folks, myself included, have been in the same home for decades. A recovery period of 15 years would've occurred over a dozen years ago. And that assumes no rise and rates. With rising rates, probably 15 years ago.

And since rates usually keep going up, that ameliorates the lost value of the panels slowing.

" Also all those policies, SS, Medicare are the reason the debt is so colossal."

Nonsense. The debt is colossal because the folks entrusted to protect the funds raided them.

It can also be tied back to tax cuts while running deficit budgets, which ALWAYS represent 100% NEW borrowing.

SS, meanwhile, has been a cash cow for the government: usable payroll taxes now, compared to SS payouts a quarter century in the future. If anybody doesn't believe me, I'll happily borrow money from them at 2% for 25 years!

" Facts and truth doesn't work on Democrat brains, you have to use 'feels'."

What a riot. Republicans have to tell four lies just to get in the door:

Trump actually won in 2020.
J6ers are patriots.
Foreigners pay tariffs.
Rx prices can drop more than 100%.

Even the "news" outlets you frequent won't tell you the truth.

"...that time that Adolf H. added 'Socialist' to the name of his Party"

To fool the gullible. Once in power, the regime either jailed or executed the leading Socialists.

And they governed exactly (checks notes...) ZERO times as Socialists, and 100% of the time as a fascist dictatorship.

"Trump Family Gains $2.3 Billion in Crypto While Investors Lose $2.3 Billion"

That's the way electronic currency is supposed to work.

You're basically playing poker with five other people, all showing each other their hands.

Remember how Republicans lost their schitttt when they thought HRC made $100,000? Seems quaint nowadays, doesn't it?

Remember how few Republicans objected when the amounts were magnitudes larger, but the letter after the name different?

Republicans want you to be OUTRAGED at Hunter Biden getting a million bucks, while SILENT when Jared gets two billion bucks.

"There is no free money in solar panels"

I think you're confusing "free" with "eventually pays for itself".

It's like triple-paned windows for new homeowners in their forever home: the cost will be more than made up in lower energy bills over time.

Not free, but in the long equation ... better than free.

" If they weren't guilty, they wouldn't need a pardon."

Fake charges cost six figures to defend against.

Trump's DOJ is filing cases they know they can't win. That's LAWFARE.

And look at the moron, pretending it's free to the falsely accused.