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Skimm'd in cozy sweatshirts

JULY 28, 2017

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Skimm'd in cozy sweatshirts

QUOTE OF THE DAY

"A lot of luck...and just the right amount of champagne" - A new mom, who's one of several Chicago women to recently give birth...nine months after the Cubs won the World Series. There were a lot of home runs that night.

THE SKINNY

The Story

The Senate GOP's 'Skinny Repeal' is a no-go.

What are you talking about?

The Senate GOP has been desperately trying to repeal and replace Obamacare. But having a hard time agreeing on a plan. Earlier this week, they voted to open debate up on the issue. Then they voted 'no' to their repeal and replace plan, and to their repeal and replace in two years plan. Plan C aka 'Skinny Repeal' was looking like their last option.

So what was in it?

It would've gotten rid of some of the most unpopular parts of Obamacare. Including the 'individual mandate' - that requires everyone have insurance - and the 'employer mandate' - that requires companies with at least 50 employees to offer coverage. It would've nixed some of the taxes that help pay for Obamacare, and temporarily cut federal funding for Planned Parenthood. It was estimated to leave 16 million people without insurance, millions fewer than previous plans.

Now what?

It's not happening. Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) - who recently found out he has brain cancer and came back to DC this week specifically for the healthcare debate - cast the decisive 'no' vote. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said "it is time to move on." President Trump, who's been pushing his party to hash out a healthcare overhaul, said lawmakers should "let Obamacare implode" on its own at this point.

theSkimm

After months of trying and failing, this plan was seen as the GOP's last-ditch effort at putting healthcare legislation in the 'done' pile. Now it's looking like that won't be happening anytime soon.

REPEAT AFTER ME...

What to say after someone gets three strikes at the company baseball game...

You're out. So is Pakistan's Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. Today, Pakistan's Supreme Court fired him over a major corruption scandal. The drama started last year, when the Panama Papers - millions of docs that exposed VIP people for being shady with their finances - came out. Those VIP people included Sharif's three adult kids, who'd allegedly used offshore companies to buy expensive London property. To which Pakistanis said 'this all looks very fishy' and the Supreme Court asked investigators to look into where the money came from. Earlier this month, those investigators said the Sharif fam had been lying about their finances and committed forgery. Sharif says 'not true.' The court says 'don't believe you.' Now he's out of a job and the ruling party has to pick a replacement. Not your average Friday.

What to say when you need to finish a bunch of pitch decks before the weekend...

Busy busy. Just like DC. Earlier this week, the Justice Department weighed in on a court case about LGBT discrimination in the workplace. The dept says a current federal law prohibiting workplace discrimination based on sex, doesn't apply to sexual orientation. Making it the second time this week the US gov has made the LGBT community say 'wtf?' Speaking of, yesterday, the military's top officer said President Trump's new ban on transgender people serving in the military will not take effect until there are more details on how it would be implemented. Pretty much everyone - including the Pentagon - was in the dark on this policy shift. So the military's saying 'keep calm and carry on...for now.' Meanwhile, Attorney General Jeff Sessions - who's already having a bit of a rough week - made his way to El Salvador to tackle gang violence. He's there to meet law officials about MS-13 - the violent international gang founded by Salvadoran immigrants that's set up shop across the US. Trump's promised to crack down on the gang. So Sessions is hoping to get the job done. Oh, and by the way, the White House's new communications director, Anthony Scaramucci, needs a new communications strategy

What to say when your friend calls with a major life update...

This is huge. Yesterday, for the first time in the US, scientists said they've successfully edited the DNA of viable human embryos. China's been doing this sort of research for a few years, hoping to prevent babies from being born with genetic diseases. But US scientists have run up against a lot of regulatory hurdles. Critics worry that tiny editing errors could have major long-term impacts on the human race. And that this could open the door to "designer babies" - or parents being able to customize their babies to be stronger, faster, and smarter. The scientists in this latest study were able to get into embryos and hit ctrl + x on DNA connected to diseases. They say this is an important baby step forward.

What to say when you hear Jeff Bezos was the richest man in the world for a hot second...

Can't keep up. Yesterday, Amazon put out its quarterly report card. The company is making more money than everyone expected. But it's also been spending a lot to stay on top of its game, shelling out on things like more video content and new warehouses. So its bottom line took a hit. That gave some investors the jitters. And Bezos spat out his celebratory champagne. Meanwhile, summer Friday is canceled at Twitter. Yesterday, the Blue Bird also dropped its earnings. And added a grand total of zero new users in the last quarter. That's just a few million short of what people were expecting. In recent years, Twitter's slow user growth has been part of the reason advertisers prefer to fly with the Facebooks and Instagrams of the world. This news definitely won't help.

PS: Silicon Valley will still have earnings on the brain next week. And our app's got all the deets. Try it out for free here.

SKIMM LIFE

SKIMM READS

"Standard Deviation" by Katherine Heiny

Imagine having dinner with your SO and your ex. And deciding to all become best friends. This read is like "The Vacationers" meets Nora Ephron. Warning: you will laugh in public. Buy here.*

SKIMM WINE

Skimm HQ likes rosé. A lot. But all bottles are not created equal. This trio is this summer's greatest hits, and they were all born in the USA. Get your ice bucket at the ready and stock up over here.*

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