# NEW Stupid Republican Idea of the Day (Part 4) **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [February 22, 2025, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678 "2025-02-22T21:08:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 120
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2025, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/2381 "2025-12-09T12:14:02Z")
Right. The idea is the _company_ produces a report/certification, the “regulator” approves it as long as it meets the required rubric prompts, taking their word as to the factual results. Or it’s “considered approved” if there’s no reply in 60 days. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2025, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/2382 "2025-12-09T13:09:35Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > It doesn’t help them for the agency to be understaffed and behind on reviewing devices. Unless it gets to the point where the FDA is disbanded or becomes so understaffed that their scope is narrowed and previously regulated food and drugs no longer need any kind of approval. Imagine new drugs showing up on the shelves with as much oversight as a new flavor of Oreos. > [@JRDelirious](#): > > The idea is the _company_ produces a report/certification, the “regulator” approves it as long as it meets the required rubric prompts It already goes a step further. There are situations in which the ‘regulator’ is a company employee that’s supposed to be carrying out the duties of the government regulator. Boeing has been in the news for this quite a bit in the last few years for this. The FAA essentially deputized some Boeing employees to do inspections, seemingly completely ignoring the glaringly obvious conflict of interest even as planes are falling out of the sky. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2025, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/2383 "2025-12-09T13:13:16Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > Sean Duffy’s plan to make air travel less stressful - EXERCISE BARS! Isn’t this at odds with the guys saying that people ought to dress up more on airplanes? ho wants to sweat into their Armani suit? ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2025, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/2384 "2025-12-09T13:42:49Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > Sean Duffy’s plan to make air travel less stressful - EXERCISE BARS! > [@CalMeacham](#): > > Isn’t this at odds with the guys saying that people ought to dress up more on airplanes? It’s the same guy! > ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2025, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/2385 "2025-12-09T14:50:05Z")
He should make up his mind then. Either we dress up in workout suits or pajamas (my ex-boss did) so we’re ready for the gym, or we dress to the nines and try not to sweat. ---
**Author:** ![Great\_Antibob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Great\_Antibob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Antibob)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2025, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/2386 "2025-12-09T14:52:05Z")
What are you? Peons? Obviously, you go to the airline club and use a shower. You only need a small workout bag. Not like you need to schlep your bags, right? Who even does that when your first class fare covers all that. What do you mean your seats are so close you can’t avoid touching other people? What kind of poors even travel like that? ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Greenjeans](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mr.greenjeans/32/551_2.png) [@Mr.Greenjeans](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Greenjeans)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2025, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/2387 "2025-12-09T14:53:23Z")
To an administration (and every one of their supporters and enablers) that is: …arresting and deporting people without due process. …committing war crimes on the high seas. …encouraging disenfranchisement. …grifting, stealing, and openly accepting bribes. …being as deplorable as that lady back in 2016 said they were. I don’t want to hear a fucking thing about civility. ---
**Author:** ![SunUp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea5d25/32.png) [@SunUp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SunUp)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2025, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/2388 "2025-12-09T15:16:06Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > Imagine new drugs showing up on the shelves with as much oversight as a new flavor of Oreos. Just what the world needs - Double Stuf Tylenol! ---
**Author:** ![Horatius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horatius/32/3572_2.png) [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2025, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/2389 "2025-12-09T19:21:43Z")
> [@Great\_Antibob](#): > > What kind of poors even travel like that? The kind like _you_, who apparently can’t even afford to pay someone else to do pull-ups for you. ---
**Author:** ![Great\_Antibob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Great\_Antibob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Antibob)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2025, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/2390 "2025-12-09T19:28:07Z")
That’s what plastic surgeons are for ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2025, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/2391 "2025-12-09T19:35:54Z")
> [@Great\_Antibob](#): > > What do you mean your seats are so close you can’t avoid touching other people? What kind of poors even travel like that? And really, nobody I know even travels commercial. It’s private jets all the way baby. I don’t even know anyone without their own jet. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2025, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/2392 "2025-12-09T20:20:22Z")
Rand Paul sez: What if, instead of insurance companies, we allowed private citizens to form some sort of collective where they could pool their resources and negotiate for less expensive coverage? > **[Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com)](https://bsky.app/profile/atrupar.com/post/3m7kmn2h52r2p)** > > Rand Paul on his healthcare plan: "What if you could join Costco? Costco has 44m members and if one person negotiated for all 44 and they bought a group plan like Toyota or General Motors does, they would be the largest collective entity in the... ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2025, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/2393 "2025-12-09T21:12:16Z")
> [@Horatius](#): > > The kind like _you_, who apparently can’t even afford to pay someone else to do pull-ups for you. His boss could use some pull-ups. [![](https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/shopping?q=tbn:ANd9GcQ_errAbMTSqZphmicC4zo0O38s6-nRyzpJmAWZkxW-Oo5LECkv-R8dV6VBZWE-CPA_NLmrwcCg1ER8jRv5tBVo_ZLYog4H_y83tSZf9QSkrcwEKe9sf7KZ) ](https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/shopping?q=tbn:ANd9GcQ_errAbMTSqZphmicC4zo0O38s6-nRyzpJmAWZkxW-Oo5LECkv-R8dV6VBZWE-CPA_NLmrwcCg1ER8jRv5tBVo_ZLYog4H_y83tSZf9QSkrcwEKe9sf7KZ) ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2025, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/2394 "2025-12-09T21:38:07Z")
Who’s a big girl princess? You’re a big girl princess! ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2025, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/2395 "2025-12-09T21:46:04Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > Rand Paul sez: What if, instead of insurance companies, we allowed private citizens to form some sort of collective where they could pool their resources and negotiate for less expensive coverage? In other words, let’s do what Democrats have been trying to establish for decades to the objection of Republicans. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2025, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/2396 "2025-12-09T21:48:28Z")
I was thinking it needs some kind of catchy name, this idea of groups of people pooling their money to **insure** themselves against high medical expenses. ---
**Author:** ![BlankSlate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blankslate/32/80_2.png) [@BlankSlate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlankSlate)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2025, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/2397 "2025-12-09T21:49:57Z")
Call it Trumpcare and BOOM the US of A has universal health care. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2025, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/2398 "2025-12-09T21:55:05Z")
Fuck it. If stroking Trumplefuck’s ego is what it takes to get it done, I’d say do it. The problem is, with the people in charge now, even if they implemented such a thing, it would be a disaster. The best ideas in the world will lead to ruin if they are executed by morons who don’t know what they’re doing. Do you want a universal health care plan guided by someone like RFK Jr, for example? Sigh… ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2025, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/2399 "2025-12-09T22:40:39Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > Unless it gets to the point where the FDA is disbanded or becomes so understaffed that their scope is narrowed and previously regulated food and drugs no longer need any kind of approval. Imagine new drugs showing up on the shelves with as much oversight as a new flavor of Oreos. Once upon a time that actually _was_ reality. Then people got tired of the carnage and the FDA was created. We’ve done all this before but hey, why learn from history, amirite? ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Winston\_OBoogie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.winston_oboogie/32/2945_2.png) [@Dr.Winston\_OBoogie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Winston_OBoogie)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2025, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/2400 "2025-12-09T22:49:18Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > Rand Paul sez: What if, instead of insurance companies, we allowed private citizens to form some sort of collective where they could pool their resources and negotiate for less expensive coverage? The entire snippet from Bluesky,… > [@](#): > > Rand Paul on his healthcare plan: “What if you could join Costco? Costco has 44m members and if one person negotiated for all 44 and they bought a group plan like Toyota or General Motors does, they would be the largest collective entity in the country. They would drive prices down by sheer might.” Let’s parse this. First of all, he’s talking about them contracting with an insurance company. This ain’t “Medicare for all” (although, if he could just expand his thinking a little bit, it could be…). Next, yes, Costco has 44 milion members. However, I’m willing to bet that a vast majority of Costco members are working for a company like Toyota or General Motors, so they already get insurance through their employer. I used to be an Actuary for a small insurance company that had clients that were similar - “co-ops” based around an alleged common grouping. So here’s the problem - healthy people either won’t get insurance, or will find an individual policy that is cheaper. You get stuck with people who 1. have medical problems that need insurance; and 2. can’t get a cheaper policy. Group Insurance is cheep because it covers a whole lot of people who don’t use it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678.md?page=119) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678.md?page=121)