Late Monday afternoon, the latest episode of that red-hot podcast, "How Much of a Sucker Are You?" dropped to great acclaim and consternation. From CNBC:

The CBO's estimate of the plan's effect on the number of uninsured Americans could influence whether Republican senators support it, as GOP leaders walk a thin line in trying to win the votes needed to pass their plan. The estimated growth in the number of uninsured Americans is slightly lower under the Senate plan than the bill that passed the House last month, which the CBO said would lead to 23 million fewer covered in 2026. Average premiums for single individuals would rise by 20 percent and 10 percent in 2018 and 2019, respectively, according to the CBO. By 2026, average premiums in most of the country would drop about 20 percent.

So, instead of the 23 million Americans that would lose their insurance under the House bill, Mitch McConnell and his merry band of male caucasians have gone into their secret clubhouse and produced a bill that will deprive of insurance only 22 million Americans. I am really tired of all this winning.

Here's how to know how much of a sucker you are. If you believe anyone on TV who says this bill is an "improvement" over the House bill, sign over all your property to your nearest sane relative.

If you put credence into the notion that the Senate bill has an upside because of its effect on The Deficit, hire someone to cut your meat for you for the rest of your life. Try to keep in mind the Blog's First Law of Economics: Fck the deficit. People got no jobs, people got no money.

There isn't a single promise that the president* made on this issue during the campaign that this new tax-cut law doesn't smash to smithereens. The CBO says this bill will knock 15 million people off their insurance next year. That's horrendous. The whole bill is about allowing Medicaid to die on the vine. The CBO says that the Medicaid cut that all those Republicans say is imaginary will top out at $772 billion.

Despite the uncertainty, the direction of certain effects of this legislation is clear. For example, the amount of federal revenues collected and the amount of spending on Medicaid would almost surely both be lower than under current law. And the number of uninsured people under this legislation would almost surely be greater than under current law.

The whole bill is about making people pay good money for bad insurance and then crowing about how premiums are lower. Low-income folks will have to choose between being uninsured, paying for street-surance that won't cover anything, or selling off the children to pay the premiums for a decent plan. From the report:

Out-of-pocket spending would also be affected for the people—close to half the population, CBO and JCT expect—living in states modifying the EHBs using waivers," the CBO said, referring to Obamacare's Essential Health Benefits. "People who used services or benefits no longer included in the EHBs would experience substantial increases in supplemental premiums or out-of-pocket spending on health care, or would choose to forgo the services.

Unless there's a procedural snag of which I'm not aware, I don't know why the Senate majority wouldn't punt this until August, and do so at the last minute. The accelerated schedule is insane; even Republican senators are complaining about it. It would give them more time to sabotage the Affordable Care Act, which Sean Spicer threatened to do in today's audio-only daily briefing. (Jesus, people. Just turn the cameras on and see what happens.) It would give them another month to make the cosmetic changes necessary for the "dissenters" to come around. It would give them the fig leaf of a "process" they could cite.

Of course, it also would give the opposition a month to increase its already formidable momentum. Tough call for McConnell, but that's why he gets the big money.

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Charles P. Pierce Charles P Pierce is the author of four books, most recently Idiot America, and has been a working journalist since 1976.

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