Trump-free Friday politics roundup

Congressional battles, royal shakeups, and increasing tensions with North Korea raise their heads in this week’s politics roundup.

Senate’s healthcare bill finally appears

Next week, the Senate will vote on healthcare legislation meant to replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA), popularly known as “Obamacare”. The American Health Care Act (AHCA) is the more conservative response to the ACA’s baby steps towards affordable, equitable American healthcare.

Or, well, that was the assumption. While the AHCA passed in the House of Representatives back in May, the Senate version remained elusive. In fact, many Senators began to complain about the lack of information. How could they vote on a bill if they had such little time to read it and draw their own conclusions?

Meanwhile, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and his associates worked on the bill behind closed doors. Finally, this week, McConnell and company finally unveiled their draft of the healthcare bill, called the “Better Care Reconciliation Act”.

If passed, the bill will reduce Medicaid funding and do away with numerous ACA taxes, penalties, and individual mandates. Many expect that this will increase the ranks of uninsured Americans by thousands, if not millions.

Meanwhile, tax cuts would benefit the richest Americans, because of course they would. Almost immediately, protesters showed up outside McConnell’s office, prompting numerous arrests.

However, this bill differs from the House version in a few key ways. It introduces subsidies for low-income citizens similar to those found in Obamacare. It also delays Medicaid cuts for at least five years. Some won’t begin until seven years from now, conveniently after the 2018 House elections.

Some Republican senators, meanwhile, have expressed concern about this draft. At The Washington Post, Paige Winfield Cunningham writes that McConnell will be a “legislative wizard” if he gets this particular bill to pass. Still, if we’ve learned anything from the political landscape of 2016 and 2017, it’s to expect the unexpected.

Handel wins Georgia’s Sixth District race

In this turbulent political year, Democrats have hoped to demonstrate growing opposition by winning several key elections throughout the U.S. However, they have won none so far, leaving them 0-5.

The latest defeat was in Georgia’s Sixth District, where newcomer Democrat Jon Ossoff faced off against Karen Handel, an established Republican. Progressives from across the country had donated and campaigned in an attempt to prove the strength of Ossoff and his party.

However, it was not to be. Handel won with 51.9 percent of the vote, while Ossoff earned 48.1 percent. Some Democrats blamed House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), though others doubted Pelosi’s influence and  her supposed unpopularity. Many are now taking this as a sort of wake-up call for the Democratic party, which has lost much of its clout and connection with citizens in recent years.

Both sides were so invested in the outcome that they poured millions of dollars into their respective candidate’s campaign. Ossoff raised $23.9 million, while Handel received $4.8 million in funding.

Saudi Arabia names a new crown prince

Unlike monarchs in other countries, the royal family of Saudi Arabia wields considerable power. While everyone is wondering how Prince Charles and his very expensive suit are going to make it to the next charity event, Saudi royals are making policy and telling women whether they can or cannot drive.

So, matters of succession are a big deal to Saudis. Given the importance of the country’s international relationships and its oil resources, it should be a big deal to us as well.

With that in mind, keep your eyes on the succession shake-up currently happening in Saudi Arabia. King Salman has named his son, Prince Mohammed bin Salman, crown prince and therefore the next successor to the royal throne.

This replaced the previous heir, Prince Mohammed bin Nayef. The 57-year-old Prince Mohammed bin Nayef is still a major player in Saudi politics. He’s an interior minister and is well known for his strong stance on national security.

This dramatic changes comes at a time when the country is facing increased tensions within its region. Iran in particular has proven to be a vocal opponent. Meanwhile, oil prices are growing lower, making economists nervous.

Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who is only 31, offers a longer and possibly more stable reign than his rival. He’s also pushed for loosened social restrictions, along with a newer and more open economy that could forge a new path for his country.

Critics fear that he is inexperienced, pointing to his involvement in a violent and unsuccessful conflict in Yemen. There, a Saudi-backed campaign fought Shiite rebels, who were said to have been backed by Iran. The younger Prince Mohammed has also pushed for closer ties with international leaders, including the current U.S. President.

Death of Otto Warmbier raises tensions with North Korea

Tensions between the United States and the reclusive communist country of North Korea have always been high. When a young American student is held there for 17 months, returns to the U.S. in a coma, and dies shortly thereafter, those strained relationships are bound to get even more difficult.

Otto Warmbier, the 22-year-old student in question, died in Cincinnati on Monday. He had been arrested by North Korea after reportedly stealing a propaganda poster from a Pyongyang hotel. He was found guilty of “hostile acts” against the state and sentenced to 15 years of hard labor. News of Warmbier then went silent. No one outside of North Korea seemed to know where he was, or what was happening to him.

Word finally came on June 6, when the U.S. State Department was notified of Warmbier’s dire health situation. Warmbier was in a coma, after supposedly contracting botulism and taking a sleeping pill.

American opposition to North Korea had caused the country to “make firm determination that humanitarianism and benevolence for the enemy are a taboo and we should further sharpen the blade of law”

However, others, including Warmbier’s family, claimed that his coma was likely the result of conditions in a forced labor camp. Others held in these North Korean camps have said that beatings, harsh conditions, and torture and regular fixtures in life there.

Warmbier died soon after his return. Now, U.S. officials are likely wondering how to react. It’s only clear that everything is well, unclear. Officials are likely to push for a full account of what happened to Warmbier. However, while others are pushing for a path to military action, many are wary of outright conflict with North Korea.

North Korea’s motivations are still murky. Said one spokesperson, “To make it clear, we are the biggest victim of this incident”. He then went on to stay that American opposition to North Korea had caused the country to “make firm determination that humanitarianism and benevolence for the enemy are a taboo and we should further sharpen the blade of law”.

And, finally, your palate cleanser

Apparently, Johann Sebastian Bach was nutso for coffee. In fact, he was such an avid drinker of the stuff that he wrote a 20-minute opera exploring the complex social milieu of the now common drink.

You see, coffee wasn’t always the ubiquitous morning brew it is today. Nor was it the subject of every other meme on your aunt’s Facebook wall. Back in the early 18th century, many genuinely thought this was the devil’s drink. Coffee houses were rowdy, lurid places where caffeine-crazed fiends would commit all manner of sins. It certainly wasn’t any place for a lady.

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However, Bach’s piece features a young woman who says that she “will turn into a shriveled-up roast goat” without at least three cups a day. The cantata, titled “Schweigt stille, plaudert nicht” (“Be Still, Stop Chattering”), is also popularly known as the “coffee cantata”. To learn more about the famous composer’s piece, head over to Bon Appetit and read Cynthia R. Greenlee’s take on the cantata and its fascinating historical context.