Background Briefing: September 23, 2026

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Claiming Fraud, Vance Kicks 760,000 Off Obamacare While Trump Pardons a Fraudster Who Stole $2 Billion From Medicare and Senator Rick Scott Paid a $1.7 Billion Fine For Defrauding Medicare

 

We begin with VP Vance proudly announcing the Trump administration has stripped 760,000 enrollees of Obamacare, the Affordable Care Act, in the name of combating fraud when the real fraudsters are the Florida Republican Senator Rick Scott whose “Healthcare” company paid the largest Medicare fraud settlement of $1.7 billion and  Trump just pardoned a fraudster who stole $2 billion from Medicare. We discuss this administration’s deliberate cruelty in denying healthcare and food assistance to our neediest neighbors by creating phony headlines that imply social safety net programs are full of fraud and need to be cut so Trump and Vance can offset the cuts by giving tax breaks to their billionaire donors. Joining us is Alex Lawson, the Executive Director of Social Security Works where his work focuses on protecting and expanding Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid and lowering prescription drug prices. His recent articles at Common Dreams include “The GOP Is Taking Our Healthcare to Fund Bombs and Tax Cuts; We’re Fighting Back” and “We Crisscrossed America to Tell Republicans: Stop Taking Our Healthcare.”

How an OMB Rule Would Give MAGA Lackies Control Over $1 Trillion in Federal Funds to Deny Climate Change Etc.

Then, as an extremely powerful category 4 Hurricane Polo threatens devastating storm surges off the coast of Acapulco, Mexico as climate scientists warn that this year’s El Niño weather pattern could be the worst on record, Background Briefing’s Anna Leah examines Trump’s planned cuts to climate change research denying us the ability to learn about changing weather and sea levels at all.  A coming Office of Management and Budget rule would give MAGA political lackies control over roughly $1 trillion in federal funds to everything from local governments to elementary schools and research institutes, but also firefighting, farm programs and veteran’s care. Joining Anna is climate scientist Andra Garner at Rowan University who researches changes to sea levels in the era of climate change. She has advised the United Nations on priorities in what it’s designated as “The Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development” and sits on the New Jersey state advisory panels for how to deal with changes to its coasts and storms.

An Update on Today’s Activities at the UN General Assembly

Then finally we get an update on today’s activities at the United Nations General Assembly and speak with Dulcie Leimbach, the founder of PassBlue, which she edits and writes, covering primarily the United Nations, peacekeeping operations and women’s issues.  Previously, she was an editor for the Coalition for the UN Convention Against Corruption; was the publications director of the United Nations Association of the USA, and was an editor at The New York Times for more than 20 years.