BUDGET/FEDERAL FUNDING/MEDICAID/NATURAL DISASTERS/PUERTO RICO/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump intervened to cut the federal government’s Medicaid funding for Puerto Rico as part of a larger government spending deal, according to four sources with knowledge of the discussions. The budget deal unveiled by lawmakers this week allocates up to $5.7 billion in Medicaid funds for the island over two years — instead of $12 billion over four years that Republican and Democratic leaders on two key congressional committees had endorsed after months of negotiating a long-term financial path for Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico has frequently been in Trump’s crosshairs, with the president calling the island ‘one of the most corrupt places on Earth’ and its politicians ‘either incompetent or corrupt.’ Puerto Rico officials have also frequently been critical of the president, especially in the wake of the federal government’s response to the catastrophic Hurricane Maria in 2017.”
–Rachana Pradhan, “Trump slashed Puerto Rico’s Medicaid money as part of budget deal,” Politico, December 17, 2019 5:59 pm