Arkansas, 2016: 60.6% voted Trump. Arkansas, 2018: "Thousands fear losing their Medicaid benefits"

[Miles Archer]

Arkansas Results: https://www.nytimes.com/elections/results/arkansas

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As Arkansas ushers in Trump-era Medicaid rules, thousands fear losing their benefits: https://reut.rs/2u4ipBJ via @yabutaleb7

Link to tweet

[atreides1]

1. Oh well!!

I don't feel sorry for anyone who voted for Trump, my sympathy is for those who are going to suffer because of those who voted for Trump!

[pamdb]

2. Medicaid in Arkansas

You reap what you sow.

[sinkingfeeling]

3. I will not cry for them. I've adopted a RW, Southern Baptist

mind set living amongst them. I got mine; the hell with you. Arkansas was blue when I came here.

[Iliyah]

4. Ya think RWers would want their

constituents healthy.

[Miles Archer]

7. Limited to states with Trump-branded hotels, casinos or golf resorts

Everyone else, not so much.

[Nay]

40. You would be wrong. RWers, the rich ones anyway, couldn't care less about their

'deplorables' -- they call them much worse names in private. They are engineering the deaths of who knows how many people, because they consider almost all of us to be "useless eaters."

[WhiteTara]

57. Hell no. Stinky steve womack led legislation to steal from SS and Medicare

he wants us all to die and do it by starving.

[The Genealogist]

5. The hospital system I work for gets numerous Arkansas Medicaid patients

We will still treat the patients, but to compensate the system will probably raise prices across the board. That will hurt a lot of people. And a lot of people who need care and seek it will no longer because they can't afford it. No doubt for some this will be a death sentance. For others it will mean staggering debt. Just cruel and stupid on the part of the hateful republicans.

[UCmeNdc]

6. They voted to cut Medicaid, They voted for Trump, They voted Republican

They will not listen to others as they say vote for the Democratic Party.

[Miles Archer]

14. From the campaign trail: "Save Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security without cuts."

"Have to do it. ..people have been paying in for years and now these candidates want to cut it."

"I'll save Social Security. I'll save Medicare. Ben Carson wants to get rid of Medicare. You can't get rid of Medicare. You know, Medicare's a program that works. You don't get rid of Medicare. You can't do that. People love Medicare, and it's unfair to them. I'm gonna fix it and make it better but I'm not going to get rid of it."

"But we're not going to hurt the people who have been paying into Social Security their whole life, and now they're supposed to get less."

"Every Republican wants to do a big number on Social Security. They want to do it on Medicare. They want to do it on Medicaid. And we can't do that. And it's not fair to the people who have been paying in for years, and all of a sudden they want to be cut."

[Luciferous]

8. They voted for Trump because they wanted others to suffer, so I don't

feel bad for any of them. You reap what you sow!

[beachbum bob]

9. I could care less what happens in red states, as a long time Illinois resident who see's his taxes

go to support these people....I am tired of those "takers"

[Blue_true]

17. Wow, are you serious? Should you even be on DU with such an attitude?

Believe me, if society falls apart because we do not support anti poverty programs, you will pay a lot fucking more just to have a chance to live another day. Taxes are cheaper than trying to live in chaos, giving people a helping hand that need one keeps us out of chaos. I hope no one alerts on your post because I think that people need to see the shit that you wrote.

[beachbum bob]

25. I believe those who seek only for themselves should be held accountable,

I am not the only one tired of supporting white conservative "rednecks" living in Tennessee, these people who vote republican, demand THEIR govt checks and want to deny others of different races or religion the same benefit. Report me...if you think you can't have a dialogue on why bluestates should continue to support red states at the federal level.

[Blue_true]

35. I did not understand your post. I get your point now. I apologize. nt

[BannonsLiver]

33. Virtually every red state is a "net taker" when it comes to federal funds.

That means unlike places like Cali and Colorado they get more from the federal teet than they put in.

[roamer65]

19. That is why we need a Transfer Payment Equalization Act.

A state should get no more back from DC than it sends into it.

[Blue_true]

37. We will never see that.

Face it, with the way the Constitution was written and how representation favors lowly populated states, making a change or a law will be impossible. Once we regain control, that will come from winning or holding red state seats, I don't see the Congresspeople from those states voting to take money from their states. We are stuck. The only option is for democrats to win control in those states, then implement policies that cause those states to grow economically, what I see, I think, is that once a state starts to grow economically, it becomes far less red and head toward being blue.

[roamer65]

44. There are alternatives.

We just aren’t there quite yet.

[Blue_true]

50. Should I start up a guilitine factory? nt

[moriah]

34. Thanks, hon. Appreciate the sympathy.

I proudly voted for Hillary here, and obviously while some people threw their votes away because they didn't think we could win the state, not everyone did.

Imagine how much fun it is to be a liberal here? It isn't.

And speaking of out of state money....

To have seen purists online who decided to primary Blanche Lincoln in 2010 with out-of-state money because for political viability she had to vote against the Public Option, not knowing how damn hard it was to get the state Blue again after the 1994 "Contract With America" crap, not having gotten letters from the only Republican we were then sending to Washington (who was my rep and Blanche's likely competition in the General, fucking Boozman) saying that his experience as an opthamologist gave him the knowledge necessary to legislate about my uterus?

You guys can blame and hate on the South, and hate all of us here, but the fact is the primary battle fed by out-of-state money sent here to get a sitting pro-choice Democratic Senator out gave Republicans ideas. And ever since they have been sending money to our GOP candidates when before people pretty much ignored us. And no money coming in now to help Democrats win General Elections here, when in 2010 both our Senators and three of our four Representatives were blue -- ffs, in three of our four districts the Democratic Party didn't even field candidates in the 2016 election.

[Blue_true]

41. If we are ever going to regain control of Congress.

We will need to elect democrats in red states. In Florida, there are constant drives to register voters. The dynamic is that red voters here are pretty much maxed out, they will get some retirees new to the state and their kids that don't reject red ideas, but those numbers won't be up to what our side is capable of producing. It is a hard fight, but Florida is slowly creeping toward blue, it does not look that way to outsiders, but bigger and bigger swatches of the state are becoming blue, and democrats are gaining seats in the legislature and senate.

You and other democrats should look at registering voters. You can help in that effort by emailing or calling Tom Perez' office at the DNC. It seems that he understands the importance of registering new voters and he must surely believe that is important for red states. One thing about the American psyche as I see it, the average American don't like extremes. The Republican Party has let an extreme 35% of Americans take it to extreme positions, it will pay for allowing that to happen, it may not look like that is happening now, but it will happen.

[SamKnause]

10. If you voted for Trump I hope you lose everything !!!!

If you did not vote for Trump you have my empathy and sympathy.

[NurseJackie]

11. Pity.

[hatrack]

12. May your hatred of Hillary sustain you as the cancer eats into your bones!

May Alex Jones bless you with exciting new proof of Obama's fake birth certificate!

May the MAGA-sticker adorned plastic pickle jar at the local Casey's overflow with dollar bill donations, blessed as it will be with the healing power of The Great Leader's slogan!

May your illnesses own the libs and trigger the snowflakes!

[Blue_true]

16. I doubt the guy in the article voted for Trump. nt

[raccoon]

13. They asked for it, they got it. Nt

[Blue_true]

15. The problem that I have with articles like the one you posted.

Last edited Tue Jul 10, 2018, 01:04 PM - Edit history (1)

Is lazy reporters. If there is an interview and pictures, they grab the first POC that meet the conditions that they are writing about. Plenty of Whites that met the same conditions could have walked right by them, but either because of ignorance, laziness or personal bias, they don't bother interviewing and taking pictures of the White people. The guy pictured in the article likely DID NOT vote for Trump, if he voted at all.

Do you really think a White rightwing evangelical would really give a shit about what is happening to poor people when the only people dumbasses and lazy reporters show are POC, in this case a Black man with a drug use history? Now, if the myriad number of White people losing poverty level benefits were shown, because numerically, they are a larger group, maybe that Christian would give a shit.

[dalton99a]

21. Good point.

[Coventina]

18. Womp womp. n/t

[dalton99a]

20. Kick

[backtoblue]

22. Arkansan my entire life. Liberal since birth.

I've voted in all elections, down to every mayor, councilmen, and school board members.


Remember there are liberals like me scattered here and we're suffering too. When I see fellow DUers basically say "screw that place. They voted for trmpf" , I feel abandoned by you guys.

It's hard enough to suffer the greedy assholes who run this state, and the stupid assholes who keep voting against their own liberties.

[Miles Archer]

38. For what it's worth...

...I didn't say "screw that place. They voted for trmpf."

My purpose behind the post was to state the cold, hard fact that 60.6% of the state went for Trump, and he was also given all 6 Electoral College votes. This recent move by the Trump administration represents the consequences of each and every one of those votes.

That doesn't mean that I refuse to acknowledge people in your position, or even that I'm happy that Trump voters will soon find themselves up Shit Creek without a paddle.

Rather...and this is just me talking, and not trying to influence what anyone else may choose to say in this thread...I hope that the Trump voters in Arkansas who are on the receiving end of this understand the consequences of their vote, and will make the necessary corrections the next time they enter a voting booth.

Some of them will, some of them won't. The die-hard red hats will probably blame Obama.

But I seldom make blanket statements about things like states. The purpose of the post wasn't to make you feel abandoned. The purpose of the post was to say, in part, that the people in your state who voted for Trump abandoned you.

[backtoblue]

39. I know Miles! It wasn't directed at your OP

It's just very difficult to see the world a completely different way than the folks you're surrounded by.

Being a woman, disabled, and an unapologetic liberal in rural AR makes me a social pariah here.

It's lonely and I've no resources to move.

I just needed to vent a little. I totally wasn't addressing you or your OP.

[Miles Archer]

43. I know, just wanted to make it clear where I stood.

I definitely understand the "It's lonely and I've no resources to move." thing.

I lived in Texas for a month and a half and hated every single minute of it.

By sheer determination and the grace of God, I lined up work with two of my California clients which financed my return to Nevada. I was basically going back to nothing, but that nothing felt infinitely better than the "something" I had in Texas. I went there at the invitation of a friend, but it felt completely wrong for me the second I touched down.

Keep the faith for the next year or two. My feeling is that Trump will push voters to the point where they will vote for change. Maybe not the red hats, maybe not a majority in your state. You'll probably never be revered as a liberal where you live, but maybe your neighbors will have a little less to strut about if their boy is no longer in the White House.

[moriah]

42. You didn't. It was just the others who responded who did.

For a snippet of what it was like here when I was a child, neighbor kids asked me who I wanted for President in the 1988 election. We were 8 and 9, maybe one 11 year old present. Too young to know anything about politics beyond what our parents said.

I said I wanted Dukakis.

They were shocked -- and one of the nine year olds said, "You mean, you're a **liberal**"?" Like it was the dirtiest word he knew yet heard often.

And in his home, I'm sure it was.

[BigDemVoter]

47. As a native of AR, I feel I can say "Fuck em", but I am well aware that many people

did not vote for Pussy Grabber. When I say it, I only mean Pussy Grabber's supporters!

I rarely EVER go back to AR. . . When I do, it is always a bit of a shock how freely some people share their Pussy Grabbing views!

[moriah]

49. Is there an assistance fund to help people get out?

I'm on disability and would qualify for public housing anywhere, but it's having that place to live while you're on the waiting list and establishing residency that makes it impossible to escape.

[geardaddy]

23. They made their beds...

They can lie in them.

[workinclasszero]

24. But Trump was only supposed to hurt PoC and those pesky liberulls!

[gratuitous]

26. Wouldn't this be a good time to offer them an alternative?

Stage a series of Democratic party rallies, invite some heavy hitters to headline each event, and introduce the Democratic platform to people from Fayetteville to Eudora, from Texarkana to Jonesboro. Show people that it's the Democrats who care about them and what they're facing, and that Democrats have a plan to make government work for them. Get some local excitement generated, register voters, talk to the local media without the Fox filter, and engage in some retail politics with citizens.

Or, we can smugly sit by and blame these people for their self-inflicted predicament.

[moriah]

36. Since my choice was between a Republican and a Libertarian 2016 House, this please.

In three out of four districts in the 2016 election here, the Democratic Party fielded zero candidates. Zip. Nada.

It was vote for a Republican, a Libertarian, leave it blank, or write-in.

[Drunken Irishman]

27. And guess what? They'll still overwhelmingly vote Trump.

[Vogon_Glory]

28. I feel for the people losing their benefits who voted against Trump and the Republicans.

I don't feel much sympathy for those who voted for Trump, for Republicans, and the politics of cruelty. If they didn't know better, they had ample occasion to do their homework before the 2016 elections. They're reaping what they sowed.

Oh, little lurking Freeper, do I sound heartless? Perhaps. But I believe that voting for Trump, Republicans, and the politics of cruelty was not some spur-of-the-moment folly, but a badly thought out decision reaffirmed days, weeks, and months before voting day.

[LonePirate]

29. Nary a question asked of anyone about why they voted Republican if they need health care.

[duforsure]

30. Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security and the ACA all to be destroyed

Many people here in Texas are feeling the same way , and that they've been conned by republicans. That's why some are nervous about this Nov. now. All their policies and lies are coming back to haunt them , and they know it, then add to that all the crazy things trumps doing and saying , they realize he's nothing but a serial liar , a treasonous corrupt criminal, and all those republicans enabling him are too. Losing Medicaid, Medicare, Social Security , and their ACA from trump and the gop destroying it for the American people. Who are these people voting for these treasonous criminals?

[onecaliberal]

31. Thoughts and prayers. Pray harder

[JDC]

32. Bootstraps and self-reliance. Hope they start to eat healthy and exercise.

It's all they are going to have left.

[Vinca]

45. Dear Arkansas Trumphumpers: I don't really care, do u?

[BigDemVoter]

46. Most of the nursing staff at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) voted for

Pussy Grabber. They were warned repeatedly that UAMS stood to lose millions if Medicare weren't shored up. . . Well, look at who's having big lay offs now. . . I can't say I feel sorry for a single one of them.

[ooky]

48. They "didn't want to pay for someone else's healthcare" and were downright nasty about it.

Karma's a bitch.

Soon they will be yelling "give me some socialism! give me some socialism! quick, I'm hurting, I can't afford my medicine, I need a life saving operation and I don't want to lose MY house", I don't want to die, Mr. Trump the great businessman said he would give me terrific health care and I believed him even though he had been ripping off others all his life but he lied about MY health care???, and my $19 a week tax break doesn't cover my $1400 a month insurance premiums, give me some socialism, now that I don't have MINE!!"

[kimbutgar]

51. You voted for a con man and I have no sympathy for those white folks who are going to

Lose their Medicaid and insurance premiums are going up.

[LenaBaby61]

52. Arkansas, 2016: 60.6% voted Trump. Arkansas, 2018: "Thousands fear losing their Medicaid benefits.

[sarcasmo]

53. Stupid is as stupid does.

[muntrv]

54. I send them my thoughts and prayers.

[KWR65]

55. Medicare for all is the solution for America.

Keeping the 20% deductible for medical treatments will cap any possible abuse of such a system. IMHO. YMMV.

[d_r]

56. 40% didn't vote for him

2 out of 5. I don't know how that venn diagram between voting and medicaid dropped works out. I am not going to celebrate any suffering though.