Inside the 3 huge lies Trump is telling Republicans about his Medicaid cuts

I never thought I’d agree with Elon Musk, but even he thinks Trump’s Big Ugly Bill is a “disgusting abomination.”

Trump is busily working the Senate this week in an effort to get his Big Ugly Bill across the finish line. Given the Republicans’ close margin in the Senate, he can afford to lose only three Republican senators.

But Republican senators don’t like the idea of cutting Medicaid — many of their constituents depend on it — and they’re balking at the huge deficit-busting price tag (which, of course, includes a giant tax cut mostly for the wealthy).

I think what Senate Republicans are most afraid of is the way this will look to the average American — a Republican reverse Robin Hood strategy of taking from the poor and working class (mostly in Medicaid cuts but also food stamps and other programs they depend on) in order to finance a tax cut for the rich, while still busting the budget.

In essence, then, the question is whether Trump and his lackeys will be able to fool the American people.

Herewith, the Trump Republican lies about Medicaid, followed by the truth.

1. “We’re not doing any cutting of anything meaningful. The only thing we’re cutting is waste, fraud and abuse. With Medicaid, waste, fraud, and abuse. There’s tremendous waste, fraud, and abuse.” (Trump on May 20)

Rubbish. Here’s the truth: The bill passed by the House will reduce federal spending on Medicaid by at least $600 billion over a decade and reduce enrollment by about 10.3 million people, according to a preliminary estimate from the Congressional Budget Office.

Most changes to Medicaid have little to do with waste, fraud, or abuse as defined by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

The single largest source for savings — estimated to be about $280 billion — comes from a new requirement for Medicaid recipients to provide proof of employment.

But about 64 percent of adult recipients already work; those who do not work can still qualify under current eligibility criteria.

Work requirements in pilot programs have done little to encourage employment and instead create an impediment for those who already work or have qualifying exemptions like a disability but struggle to meet the new reporting requirements.

See this video that my colleagues and I posted today:

- YouTubeyoutu.be

2. “We are not cutting Medicaid in this package. There’s a lot of misinformation out there about this …. The numbers of Americans who are affected are those that are entwined in our work to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse. So, what do I mean by that? You got more than 1.4 million illegal aliens on Medicaid. (Speaker Mike Johnson)

Utter BS. Here’s the truth: Unauthorized immigrants are not eligible for federally funded Medicaid, except in emergency situations. States are required to verify immigration status to determine eligibility.

3. “The One Big, Beautiful Bill also helps get our fiscal house in order by carrying out the largest deficit reduction in nearly 30 years with $1.6 trillion in mandatory savings.” (Karoline Leavitt, White House press secretary)

Baloney. Here’s the truth: The Congressional Budget Office estimates that the bill will increase the deficit by $3.8 trillion; the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget estimates $3.1 trillion including interest; the Penn Wharton Budget Model estimates $2.8 trillion; and the Tax Foundation estimated $1.7 trillion when factoring in economic growth.

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Robert Reich is a professor of public policy at Berkeley and former secretary of labor. His writings can be found at https://robertreich.substack.com/