Politics
Johnson Rules Out an Aggressive Plan to Cut Medicaid as G.O.P. Moderates Waver

Speaker Mike Johnson has dropped one of the most aggressive options the G.O.P. was considering to cut Medicaid costs to help pay for President Trump’s domestic agenda, bowing to pressure from politically vulnerable Republicans and underscoring the deep party divisions imperiling the plan.
Leaving his office on Tuesday night after meeting with a group of more moderate members, Mr. Johnson told reporters that House Republicans had ruled out lowering the amount the federal government pays states to care for working-age adults who became eligible for the program through the Affordable Care Act’s Medicaid expansion.
Mr. Johnson also suggested he was leaning against another way of reducing spending on Medicaid, by changing the way the federal government pays states — currently by providing a percentage of beneficiaries’ medical bills — to a flat fee per person.
“I think we’re ruling that out as well, but stay tuned,” the speaker said.
The retreat was an acknowledgment that many House Republicans viewed the ideas — both of which would create large state budget shortfalls — as politically toxic. It also underscored how difficult it will be for Mr. Johnson’s conference to find Medicaid cuts that hit the spending targets Republicans set for themselves and also win enough votes to pass.
Ultraconservative Republicans quickly vented their opposition, in a public reminder that Mr. Johnson’s efforts to stave off a revolt of mainstream lawmakers could cost him crucial support from his right flank. That could doom Mr. Trump’s vast tax and spending cut plan in the House, where the speaker can afford to lose fewer than a handful of votes.
“Well – I haven’t ruled it out,” Representative Chip Roy, Republican of Texas, declared on social media after Mr. Johnson’s comments on Tuesday night about abandoning the idea of cutting back on federal payments for some Medicaid beneficiaries. “It’s necessary to stop robbing from the vulnerable to fund the able-bodied.”
House Republicans are laboring to identify roughly $2 trillion in spending cuts to help offset both the 2017 tax cuts they want to extend and the new tax cuts they want to pass in their reconciliation bill. The biggest challenge so far has centered on the Medicaid program, which provides health insurance to 72 million poor and disabled Americans.
The House budget plan calls for $880 billion in cuts from the committee that oversees the program, a target that would be difficult to achieve without substantial changes. If House Republicans cannot agree on policies that comply with the instructions, the entire package could be doomed.
Abruptly reducing federal funding for the program by paying less in the 40 states and the District of Columbia that have expanded Medicaid under Obamacare would have saved an estimated $710 billion over a decade, according to new estimates released by the Congressional Budget Office on Wednesday.
That would have cut funding to state governments, which would have been left with difficult choices. Nine states have passed laws that would cause them to automatically drop coverage for the expansion population if federal funding declines, and three others have provisions that would force an immediate legislative review.
Other states would need to make up the money in some other way — by cutting benefits or payments to medical providers, raising taxes or cutting other state functions. As a result of those changes, the budget office estimated that the policy would cause 5.5 million Americans to lose their Medicaid coverage and 2.4 million Americans to become uninsured.
The Obamacare expansion extended health benefits to poor, childless adults without disabilities, a population that many Republican lawmakers consider less worthy of resources than other populations Medicaid serves, such as poor children, pregnant women and Americans who live in nursing homes. But other Republicans see this population as a core constituency, as working-class voters have become a growing component of the party’s electoral coalition.
Some conservatives like Mr. Roy have argued that uniting around cutting the Affordable Care Act, a program their party detests, should be the bare minimum for Republicans looking to raise revenue for Mr. Trump’s agenda.
“I’ve got a bunch of my colleagues running around saying, ‘Well, we can’t touch Medicaid,’” Mr. Roy said in a speech on the House floor. “Why can’t we? Medicaid was expanded under Obamacare, which we all opposed, and the Medicaid expansion was a big reason why we opposed it.”
But many of Mr. Roy’s colleagues, especially those in politically competitive seats, do not agree. The cuts would be particularly damaging in wealthier Democratic-led states, such as California and New York, where Republicans have been elected in districts where many constituents use Medicaid.
Medicaid pays those states 90 percent of the medical bills for people covered under the expansion, but only half the bill for other beneficiaries, a significant difference.
“I will never support cuts to Medicaid, Medicare or Social Security that are not specifically aimed at reducing waste, fraud or abuse,” said Representative Jeff Van Drew, Republican of New Jersey.
But without any such cuts, Republicans are left with a dwindling set of options that would allow them to meet their $880 billion target. Medicaid reforms with broad support across the caucus, such as requiring beneficiaries to prove they are employed in order to keep their benefits, would not reduce spending by nearly as much.
Another option under consideration, limiting taxes on hospitals and other complex financing maneuvers that states use to increase federal spending on the program, would tend to disadvantage states led by Republicans. The budget office estimated it would reduce the deficit by around $668 billion and cause 3.9 million more people to become uninsured.
Mr. Trump has also recently expressed a reluctance to make any major cuts to Medicaid, and has repeated several times that the program should not be “touched.” A White House official said Mr. Trump was pushing for stronger discounts on prescription drugs used in Medicaid, an alternative that would avoid some of the political pitfalls but may not save enough to comply with the budget language.

Politics
Gabbard says Comey should be 'put behind bars' after picture allegedly 'issuing a call to assassinate' Trump

Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard said ex-FBI Director James Comey should be “put behind bars” for a post he made on Instagram on Thursday allegedly “issuing a call to assassinate [President Donald Trump.]”
Earlier on Thursday, Comey shared a picture on Instagram with seashells formed in the numbers “86 47.” To some, the number “86” is a call sign for murdering or getting rid of someone or something and “47” is typically used to refer to the 47th President of the United States.
“Cool shell formation on my beach walk…,” Comey wrote in the caption of the picture, which has since been deleted.
Gabbard made the comments on “Jesse Watters Primetime” Thursday night after Comey said he wasn’t aware that the number “86” stands for some sort of violence.
EX-FBI CHIEF COMEY’S ‘86 47’ SOCIAL MEDIA POST CONDEMNED BY WHITE HOUSE AS ATTEMPT TO PUT ‘HIT’ ON PRESIDENT
National Intelligence Director Tulsi Gabbard said ex-FBI Director James Comey should be in jail for posting an Instagram photo of the numbers “86 47,” which has been interpreted as a threat to Trump. (ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images)
“I posted earlier a picture of some shells I saw today on a beach walk, which I assumed were a political message,” Comey said after deleting the initial picture. “I didn’t realize some folks associate those numbers with violence. It never occurred to me but I oppose violence of any kind so I took the post down.”
Gabbard said Comey and his people “need to be held to account according to the law” regardless of why he said he posted the picture.
“The rule of law says people like him who issue direct threats against the POTUS, essentially issuing a call to assassinate him, must be held accountable under the law,” Gabbard said, adding that she thinks he should be in jail.

Ex-FBI Director James Comey posted an Instagram photo of seashells arranged in the numbers “86 47” – which has been interpreted as a threat on President Donald Trump’s life. (AP)
The national intelligence director said Comey’s post has her “very concerned for [the president’s life.]”
“I’m very concerned for the president’s life; we’ve already seen assassination attempts. I’m very concerned for his life and James Comey, in my view, should be held accountable and put behind bars for this,” she said.
‘NEVER TRUMPER’ COMEY’S ’86 47′ TRUMP POST UNDER INVESTIGATION
Gabbard also said Comey has a lot of influence and that there are “people who take [him] very seriously.”
Shortly after Comey removed the post, Fox News Digital learned from a Secret Service source that the agency was aware of the incident and agents are being sent to investigate and interview Comey.
The White House also condemned Comey’s actions, with White House deputy chief of staff and Cabinet Secretary Taylor Budowich calling his post “deeply concerning.”
“While President Trump is currently on an international trip to the Middle East, the former FBI Director puts out what can clearly be interpreted as ‘a hit’ on the sitting President of the United States — a message etched in the sand,” Budowich wrote on X. “This is deeply concerning to all of us and is being taken seriously.”
Comey, who led the FBI during Trump’s first term before he was fired from the spot, had no comment when reached by Fox News Digital earlier on Thursday.
Fox News Digital’s Alec Schemmel and David Spunt contributed to this report.
Politics
Justices skeptical of Trump plan to limit birthright citizenship but also injunctions that block it
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court gave a skeptical hearing Thursday to a lawyer for President Trump who was appealing rulings that blocked his plan to deny citizenship to newborns whose parents were in this country illegally or temporarily.
None of the justices spoke in favor of Trump’s plan to restrict birthright citizenship, and several were openly skeptical.
“Every court is ruling against you,” Justice Elena Kagan said. “There’s not going to be a lot of disagreement on this.”
If his plan were to take effect, “thousands of children will be born and rendered stateless,” Justice Sonia Sotomayor said.
But Thursday’s hearing was devoted to a procedural question raised by the administration: Can a single federal judge issue a nationwide order to block the president’s plan?
Shortly after Trump issued his executive order to limit birthright citizenship, federal judges in Maryland, Massachusetts and Washington state declared it unconstitutional and blocked its enforcement nationwide.
In response, Trump’s lawyers asked the court to rein in the “epidemic” of nationwide orders handed down by district judges.
It’s an issue that has divided the court and bedeviled both Democratic and Republican administrations.
Trump’s lawyers argued that on procedural grounds, the judges overstepped their authority. But it is also procedurally unusual for a president to try to revise the Constitution through an executive order.
Thursday’s hearing did not appear to yield a consensus on what to do.
Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh said the plaintiffs should be required to bring a class-action claim if they want to win a broad ruling. But others said that would lead to delays and not solve the problem.
Justice Neil M. Gorsuch said he was looking for a way to decide quickly. “How do we get to the merits expeditiously?” he asked.
One possibility was to have the court ask for further briefing and perhaps a second hearing to decide the fundamental question: Can Trump acting on his own revise the long-standing interpretation of the 14th Amendment?
Shortly after the Civil War, the Reconstruction Congress wrote the 14th Amendment, which begins with the words: “All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof are citizens of the United States and of the state wherein they reside.”
Before that, Americans were citizens of their states. Moreover, the Supreme Court in the infamous Dred Scott decision said Black people were not citizens of their states and could not become citizens even if they were living in a free state.
The amended Constitution established U.S. citizenship as a birthright. The only persons not “subject to the jurisdiction” of the laws of the United States were foreign diplomats and their families and, in the 19th century, Indians who were “not taxed” and were treated as citizens of their tribal nations.
However, Congress changed that rule in 1924 and extended birthright citizenship to Native Americans.
Since 1898, the Supreme Court has agreed that birthright citizenship extends to the native-born children of foreign migrants living in this country. The court said then that “the fundamental rule of citizenship by birth, notwithstanding the alienage of parents” had been established by law.
The decision affirmed the citizenship of Wong Kim Ark, who was born in San Francisco in 1873 to Chinese parents who were living and working there, but who were not U.S. citizens.
But several conservative law professors dispute the notion that the phrase “subject to the jurisdiction” of the United States means simply that people living here are subject to the laws here.
Instead, they say it refers more narrowly to people who owe their undivided allegiance to this country. If so, they contend it does not extend broadly to illegal immigrants or to students and tourists who are here temporarily.
On Jan. 20, Trump issued an executive order proclaiming the 14th Amendment does not “extend citizenship universally to everyone born within the United States.” He said it would be U.S. policy to not recognize citizenship for newborns if the child’s mother or father was “not a United States citizen or lawful permanent resident at the time of said person’s birth.”
Immigrants rights groups sued on behalf of several pregnant women, and they were joined by 22 states and several cities.
Judges wasted no time in declaring Trump’s order unconstitutional. They said his proposed restrictions violated the federal law and Supreme Court precedent as well as the plain words of the 14th Amendment.
In mid-March, Trump’s lawyers sent an emergency appeal to the Supreme Court with “a modest request.” Rather than decide the “important constitutional questions” involving birthright citizenship, they urged the justices to rein in the practice of district judges handing down nationwide orders.
They have “reached epidemic proportions since the start of the current administration,” they said.
A month later, and without further explanation, the court agreed to hear arguments based on that request.
Solicitor Gen. D. John Sauer struggled to explain how judges should proceed when faced with a government policy that would be unconstitutional and harm an untold number of people. Is it wise or realistic to insist that thousands of people sign on to lawsuits? the justices asked.
He also had a hard time explaining how such a new policy would be enforced.
“How’s it going to work? What do hospitals do with a newborn?” Kavanaugh asked. “What do states do with a newborn?”
“Federal officials will have to figure that out, essentially,” Sauer replied, noting that Trump’s order, if upheld, would not take effect for 30 days.
California joined 21 other states in suing successfully to block Trump’s order, but California Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta said it was important those rulings apply nationwide.
“The rights guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution belong to everyone in this country — not just those born in states whose attorneys general have stood up to challenge the president’s unlawful executive order. It’s clear that a nationwide injunction is not only appropriate here to avoid devastating harm to the states and their residents, but is also directly aligned with prior Supreme Court precedent,” Bonta said after Thursday’s argument.
The justices are likely to hand down a full opinion in Trump vs. CASA, but it may not come until late June.
Politics
Video: Ben and Jerry’s Founder Arrested at Kennedy’s Senate Hearing

new video loaded: Ben and Jerry’s Founder Arrested at Kennedy’s Senate Hearing
transcript
transcript
Ben and Jerry’s Founder Arrested at Kennedy’s Senate Hearing
Ben Cohen, a co-founder of the ice cream brand Ben and Jerry’s, was among a group of protesters that interrupted a Senate committee hearing to protest Congress’s funding for Israel’s military as it wages war against Hamas in Gaza.
-
I’m presenting today supports these goals and reflects — [protesters shouting] The witness will suspend. The committee will come to order. Members of the audience are reminded disruptions will not be permitted while the committee conducts its business. Capitol Police are asked to remove the individuals from the hearing room.
Recent episodes in U.S. & Politics
-
Austin, TX5 days ago
Best Austin Salads – 15 Food Places For Good Greens!
-
Technology1 week ago
Be careful what you read about an Elden Ring movie
-
Technology1 week ago
Netflix is removing Black Mirror: Bandersnatch
-
World1 week ago
The Take: Can India and Pakistan avoid a fourth war over Kashmir?
-
News1 week ago
Reincarnated by A.I., Arizona Man Forgives His Killer at Sentencing
-
News1 week ago
Jefferson Griffin Concedes Defeat in N.C. Supreme Court Race
-
Health1 week ago
N.I.H. Bans New Funding From U.S. Scientists to Partners Abroad
-
News1 week ago
Who is the new Pope Leo XIV and what are his views?