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WASHINGTON—Republicans in Washington came away from the recent elections with a clear takeaway: focus on the high cost of living or risk big losses in next year’s midterms. President Trump said this past week that Republicans aren’t talking enough about his administration’s successes, and he dismissed questions on voters’ concerns regarding the economy. Most prices are on the downswing, he argued.
“Our energy costs are way down. Our groceries are way down. Everything is way down. And the press doesn’t report it,” Trump said. “So, I don’t want to hear about the affordability. Because right now, we’re much less.”
Trump’s optimistic perspective on the economy is at odds with government statistics and the views of many voters, according to pollsters and analysts. The Labor Department reported last month that consumer prices rose 3% in September from a year earlier, marking the fastest pace since January. In recent surveys, voters said the cost of housing, groceries and utility bills is unmanageable. Democratic candidates who focused their messages on affordability came out on top in Tuesday’s elections, handily beating their Republican challengers.
In the Oval Office on Friday, Trump lashed out at reporters who pressed him on the cost of living: “We are the victors on affordability.” The president called Democrats’ contention that affordability played a role in Tuesday’s election a “con job”.
Privately, Republicans said they are worried that Trump seems reluctant to empathize with voters’ economic pain. Some in the GOP have been raising red flags for weeks about Republicans’ vulnerabilities over the economy. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R., Ga.) said in a recent interview with CNN, “Affordability is a problem.” “I go to the grocery store myself. Grocery prices remain high. Energy prices are high,” she said. “My electricity bills are higher here in Washington, D.C., at my apartment, and they’re also higher at my house in Rome, Ga.—higher than they were a year ago.”
Trump has focused in part on legacy-building projects such as peace deals abroad and a $300 million ballroom. Democrats are planning to say in ads that Trump is out of touch. Rahm Emanuel, a former top adviser to President Barack Obama, said “He is telling you he doesn’t really care”... “He does a very good impersonation of Marie Antoinette in drag”.
"Trump is showing all the hallmarks of being isolated. “Every president loves the people who come in and tell them how great he is doing,” Emanuel said. “It is an illness of the Oval Office.”
The Trump administration has launched its most direct attempt yet to shut down the top US consumer watchdog, arguing the current funding mechanism behind the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is unlawful.
Attorneys for the administration claimed in a court filing that the agency “anticipates exhausting its currently available funds in early 2026”, setting the stage for it to be dismantled. The CFPB is legally barred from seeking additional funds from the Federal Reserve, its typical source of funding, the attorneys suggested.
Donald Trump’s officials have tried persistently to close the agency, attempting to fire the vast majority of its workforce. These efforts sparked months of legal wrangling. The CFPB has returned more than $21bn to US consumers since it was set up, in the wake of the financial crisis, to shore up oversight of consumer financial firms.
The justice department’s office of legal counsel issued an opinion claiming the CFPB cannot draw money from the Fed currently, claiming the “combined earnings of the Federal Reserve System” refers to profits of the Fed, which has operated at a loss since 2022. Several federal judges have previously rejected that argument used by companies attempting to dismiss lawsuits brought by the agency, reported Politico.
Russell Vought, the White House office of management and budget director, said in October that he plans to shut down the agency, and that this would take up to three months. The claim was criticized by Democrats, given previous contrary statements from the administration, and court decisions blocking the agency from being shut down.
“These comments are particularly concerning given that a federal court has specifically blocked you from illegally shutting down the agency,” wrote Senate banking committee Democrats in a letter to Vought. “Your continued attempts to shutter the CFPB are illegal, and American families stand to pay the price.”
Vought has already suspended most of the agency’s work, as the full DC circuit court of appeals is deciding whether to take the case as a lower court order blocked the firings of about 90% of the agency’s staff.
The CFPB did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
@FD1000 If a Medigap Plan G jumps 40% in three years, the solution is to switch companies through underwriting if required. I know a few people who, by changing insurers each year, are paying less today than three years ago.
No.
Supplement Insurance (Medigap) Plan G policies.
@FD1000 Thank you for your partial response to my question. Could you please clarify which insurance company’s premium for Plan G increased from $145 to $206 over the past three years? Also, what age did you use to calculate these premiums?
The idea that I have answered — or will ever answer — your question is ludicrous.
@msf As always, you provide excellent information! With evidence, detail, and zero fluff.Humana's HMO plan H4141-017-003 isn't an option.
If your wife's employer(?) is giving you added benefits but offering fewer options, I can't speak to that. H4141 is generally available to subscribers in most of Georgia (Metro Georgia). See first page of Summary of Benefits.
https://www.humana-medicare.com/BenefitSummary/2026PDFs/H4141017003SB26.pdf
All the HMOs don't have all our doctors. That's a no-go.
"Staying flexible" only goes so far. I'd do the same thing rather than be flexible with doctors. Though insisting on particular providers comes at the cost of higher premiums and/or coinsurance and/or caps.
Every HMO has a rating of 3.5/5. Every PPO is 4.5/5. The PFFS is better than all, IMO.
H8145, Humana's PFFS in Georgia, has a 3.5* rating for 2026. (This is a drop from its 4.0 star rating for 2025.)
https://www.humana-medicare.com/BenefitSummary/2026PDFs/H8145GHA09ECHH26.pdf
There are 13 Humana PPOs for 2026 in Fulton County, GA (Atlanta) (your county may vary). Three of them have 4.5 stars; the remaining 10 have 3.5 stars. Not that I have any idea what the stars mean in pragmatic terms.
https://www.medicare.gov/plan-compare/#/search-results?plan_type=PLAN_TYPE_MAPD&fips=13121&zip=30305&year=2026&lang=en&page=1
What happens if we vacation in CA and I get a heart attack? No HMO covers me in-network.
From the HMO summary of benefits above:The last surgery I had, the doctor and the facility were not in-network. I pay the same as in-network.HMO Travel Benefit
Members may receive in-network benefits when services are received from a participating HMO National Network provider when traveling to other states.
Providers have the option, on a case by case basis, of providing you service on in-network rates. If they do so they agree to the terms of your policy as if they were in-network. That's a downside risk of PFFS plans - you are stuck with providers who are either in-network or are willing to pretend they are for you.
From Humana's PFFS Evidence of Coverage:We have network providers for all services covered under Original Medicare as well as other services not covered by Original Medicare. You can still receive covered services from out-of-network providers (those who don't have a signed contract with our plan), as long as those providers agree to accept our plan's terms and conditions of payment
President Trump is slamming U.S. air traffic controllers who called out of work during the government shutdown, during which they were forced to stay on the job without pay.
Trump said in a post on Truth Social Monday morning that he was "NOT HAPPY" with controllers who took time off. "All Air Traffic Controllers must get back to work, NOW!!! Anyone who doesn't will be substantially 'docked,'" he wrote.
In a statement to NPR, the National Air Traffic Controllers Association said, "This nation's air traffic controllers have been working without pay for over 40 days. The vast majority of these highly trained and skilled professionals continue to perform one of the most stressful and demanding jobs in the world, despite not being compensated. Many are working six-day weeks and ten-hour days without any pay."
"These unsung heroes, who report for duty to safely guide this country's passengers and cargo to their destinations, deserve our praise. They have certainly earned it."
Meanwhile, Trump called controllers who took no time off during the longest shutdown in U.S. history "GREAT PATRIOTS" and said he would recommend giving them each a $10,000 bonus.
He said any controllers who wanted to quit shouldn't hesitate, but would receive "NO payment or severance of any kind!" and would be "quickly replaced by true Patriots." (In fact, one reason for the shortage is that it takes years to train and certify new controllers.)
Others offered sharp criticism of Trump's comments. "The President wouldn't last five minutes as an air traffic controller," former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said in a post on X, "and after everything they've been through - and the way this administration has treated them from Day One - he has no business s****ing on them now."
You’re obviously not great at timing — so why bother doing it at all?One more post that timing the market is just gambling:
I reduced my equity holdings from 45% to 30% over the summer thinking things were too overvalued and told myself I will not buy until October which is normally not a good month. FOMO was hard as everything was going higher and higher just about EVERY day but I wasn't going to budge! I apologize for not alerting the board that I was going back to 45% November 3rd. The last 2 days are just a slap in the face which as we all know happens to all of us. Down days after a big purchase. I will follow my asset allocation plan, I will follow my asset allocation plan. I will continue to type that 100 times as punishment for bad behavior. UGH
The idea that I have answered — or will ever answer — your question is ludicrous.
No.
Supplement Insurance (Medigap) Plan G policies.
@FD1000 Thank you for your partial response to my question. Could you please clarify which insurance company’s premium for Plan G increased from $145 to $206 over the past three years? Also, what age did you use to calculate these premiums?
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