The race is over. We didn’t lose, America.

First, a collective sigh of relief. This wasn’t easy.

Let’s all take a moment to remember that we are part of this victory, to feel the relief and the joy wash over us. For those of us who get to keep our health insurance and for those of us who will continue to benefit from the ACA’s protections this is an important day. That means all of us. This is big.

Senator Susan Collins and Senator Lisa Murkowski stuck to their guns and came through for Americans, for the children and the elderly, for our veterans, for us all. They truly are heroes because while it should have been an easy choice – the democrats all knew it was a no-brainer – these GOP senators stood up to their own party, and we know how nasty the GOP is playing these days. Senator Murkowski voted to keep her people insured even after the president threatened the future of her state, Alaska. (Not going there tonight – this is about relief, not about what a despicable, corrupt person 45 is)

Oh, and Senator McCain put two bits where his mouth is, too, for once. Yay. Woohooo, hero, yaddah, yaddah.

Don’t bother. It’s about time McCain did one good thing. It’s not like it costs him anything to do the right thing at this point. He won’t be running again. He could have stopped all this bullshit from happening in the first place, so he gets one “yay.” The real heroes here are all the Senate Democrats (*enthusiastic wave* to my senator, Tammy Baldwin, who fights for Wisconsin veterans and for the rest of us), Collins, and Murkowski. They are the people who chose country over party pretty much all along.

When it feels too hard, and we want to give up, we can’t. We still have a long way to go, and with the damage they’ve already done, the fear and hate, the ignorance and bigotry, well, some days it’s hard not to despair. Days like today when people will live because we didn’t give up, these are the days we’re working for.

Thank you, Resistance.

From the bottom of my heart, thank you to every single person who stands up, who calls/writes their representatives daily or weekly, to those who share and interpret news and laws. Thank you to those who carry signs and wear pink hats and to those who remind me why I need to keep going when it feels too hard, when it seems like we’re just spinning our wheels, when I fear nobody is listening. You remind me it’s our government and if not us, who?

I wish I could hug you all and have a good cry tonight, relieve a bit of the stress that threatens to overwhelm us sometimes.

You saved lives tonight; we saved lives. Everyone matters. Everyone. You did it. Thank you!

(Senator Ron Johnson sucks, by the way, and not in the good way)

You may resume your autofellatio jokes. I certainly will.

Speaking of heroes, link: “Rod Stewart pays travel costs for kids with disabilities to come to DC to protest Medicaid cuts” – by Robin Eberhardt at The Hill

Link: “GOP Obamacare repeal bill fails in dramatic late-night vote” – by MJ Lee, Lauren Fox, Ted Barrett, Phil Mattingly and Ashley Killough at CNN

Link: “Why Trump Is Threatening the Wrong Republican Senator on Health Care” – by Russell Berman at The Atlantic

Link: “McCain Votes No, Dealing Potential Death Blow To Republican Health Care Efforts” by Susan Davis and Domenico Montanaro at NPR

Link to original tweet from Simar.