Richardson flags several Senate Democrats' speeches that makes the case that not only is the OBBB fiscally irresponsible, it's immoral. Krugman amplifies this by pointing out that Medicaid is really popular.
Both note that the Republican Party has been on a decades long quest to destroy the New Deal and the Great Society. The very idea that government should provide benefits beyond public order is tyranny according to GOP ideologues. The problem for them is that this ideology is unpopular. When Newt Gingrich went after Medicare, it was unpopular. When George W. Bush went after Social Security, it was unpopular. As Donald Trump goes after Medicaid, it is unpopular.
At the moment, the bill does not have the votes in the Senate to pass. Rand Paul says it's fiscally irresponsible, which - you know -it is. Tillis won't vote to gut his constituents' health care. Collins and Murkowski also apparently can't vote for the final bill. I would not put it past the GOP to find a way to force them into line, but if they do, I really think it will deliver the Senate to Democrats in 2026.
