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The waiting list for nursing home money is getting even longer

The budget for the scheme is capped and those on the waiting list are forced to foot a bill of €13,000 a year until they’re approved.

OLDER PEOPLE APPLYING for the Fair Deal nursing home support today will not receive a payment until March 2015.

This means elderly people will have to fund their own nursing home care until that time, to the tune of €13,ooo a year.

Independent TD Denis Naughten has pointed out that the budget for this scheme is capped at just over €9 million this year and the same budget is planned for 2015.

Right now, there are 1,200 people waiting over 15 weeks for their payment through the scheme, with 60 older people a week being added to the waiting list.

“There will be no additional money so by next year it’ll have gotten worse,” the TD told TheJournal.ie.

Under the initiative, a person who needs nursing home care can make a contribution towards the cost while the State pays the balance. While they wait for their government funding, the older person, or their family, have to find funds to meet a bill of €13,000 for their nursing home care until the scheme’s financial support kicks in.

“I know of a family and they have older people at home who are not really fit to be at home, who need long term nursing care and they just can’t afford to put them into a home,”   Naughten told us.

People don’t have €13,000 and lots of people who went in didn’t realise that the waiting list was so long. In one case, a person had to take their elderly relative out of a nursing home as they just didn’t have the money to pay anymore.

Alone, the charity which supports older people in need yesterday also condemned the length of the waiting list.

Hospital beds

“Older people are waiting over four months to access a bed under the nursing home support scheme, which in some cases is forcing them to occupy beds in hospitals already struggling to cope with emergencies and planned surgeries,” commented Naughten.

“There are currently just short of 700 patients who are deemed ‘fit’ for discharge in hospitals costing €850 per night, yet the HSE won’t release nursing home beds under the fair deal scheme because they are costing €850 per week.”

This is costing the health service €4 million every week in order to save €600,000.

“This is yet another example of health policy which is penny wise and pound foolish. If we are to a have an effectively run health service then we need to get the basic things right, ” added Denis Naughten.

Last week, Health Minister Leo Varadkar said the main issue with the scheme is that it is budget-capped and “when the budget runs out that is part of the big problem”.

Read: Nursing home waiting lists are ‘spiralling out of control’>

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21 Comments
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    Mute Maurice O Neill
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    Aug 19th 2020, 7:17 AM

    Put your house on President Trump. He is what we would like to refer to in a race as a Banker

    217
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    Mute Mark Brown
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    Aug 19th 2020, 7:28 AM

    @Maurice O Neill: And with that attitude, you are what we like to refer to as a wan…

    117
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    Mute Tony Gordon
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    Aug 19th 2020, 7:29 AM

    @Maurice O Neill: I know a word that rhymes with it that describes Trump to a tee.

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    Mute Nowa Huta
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    Aug 19th 2020, 8:45 AM

    @Mark Brown: just because he has a different opinion than you?? i think it’s pretty clear who the wan (as you so eloquently put it) is in this situation. What a world we live in

    56
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    Mute Michael
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    Aug 19th 2020, 9:00 AM

    @Nowa Huta: Thats the best argument that anti Trump’s can come up with. Typical.

    44
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    Mute Pat Kelly
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    Aug 19th 2020, 9:16 AM

    @Maurice O Neill: ” yes we can ” ” make America great again ” and now ” make America whole” is it just who can come up with the cheesyist slogan wins !

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    Mute ahhhhh its
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    Aug 19th 2020, 9:37 AM

    @Michael: I think the problem is that it doesn’t matter what the argument is, or how many facts are placed in front of them, Trump supporters are incapable of seeing him for what he is.

    31
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    Mute Daniel Dunne
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    Aug 19th 2020, 10:03 AM

    @ahhhhh its: Most people think that Trumps personality is little to be desired, however his policies and also by-and-large sticking to his election promises have galvanised his base.
    It’s interesting to see that while he has lost some support (especially from never-Hillary voters) he has gained a large following from African Americans and Hispanics. There is a large and growing support base there from the #Blexit and #WalkAway movements.
    Kimberly Klacik is a prime example of this and there are many more like her out there.

    43
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    Mute thomas patrick
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    Aug 19th 2020, 10:10 AM

    @Pat Kelly: Americans love that stuff

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    Mute Dave O'Keeffe
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    Aug 19th 2020, 10:40 AM

    @Daniel Dunne: list of the policies and promises kept there for us. Also, on Klacik, you’re basically talking about one person. One person is not a symptom of anything. Especially a person that already lost an election to win that seat earlier this year and will face the same opponent in November. As for #WalkAway I’m not sure Candace Owens and some stock photos convinced many people. There’s also the fact that it’s mostly conservatives that are paying attention to it. As for #Blexit again, Candace Owens stance that racial bias in policing doesn’t exist isn’t really going to unite black people behind her. It’s also patently untrue. She’s deeply unpleasant, even attacked a murder victims family on social media for asking her to stop exploiting their grief.

    7
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    Mute Anthony McGovern
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    Aug 19th 2020, 10:52 AM

    @Maurice O Neill: Well he certianly is rotund enough. I doubt his knees are load baring to take the weight of it i mean i live in a 2 story house. are you sure he can take the weight?

    5
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    Mute David Farrell
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    Aug 19th 2020, 11:43 AM

    @ahhhhh its: whats that?

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    Mute Dave O'Keeffe
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    Aug 19th 2020, 12:28 PM

    @Anthony McGovern: I thought it was a Wizard of Oz reference

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    Mute polly nicoll
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    Aug 19th 2020, 1:43 PM

    @Pat Kelly: if Biden gets in it’ll be make America a hole again.

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    Mute Angela McCarthy
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    Aug 19th 2020, 2:16 PM

    @Maurice O Neill: Dont put your house on Trump, we have enough homeless people here already!

    6
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    Mute blue exile
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    Aug 19th 2020, 7:43 AM

    One candidate is delusional and the other has dementia .
    Can the u.s not find better people than this ?

    95
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    Mute David A. Murray
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    Aug 19th 2020, 7:13 AM

    Conventional politics is bad enough, but at least it possesses some level of competence, and organisation. Biden has never been an inspiring candidate for President, but he at least understands what the Presidency is and how American politics works. Trump has shown himself to be unable to even talk about the Presidency convincingly. No matter what attacks Trump makes on Biden, Trump has demonstrated only one thing. That Trump is a confidence man who is inept at being a confidence man.

    97
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    Mute Maurice O Neill
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    Aug 19th 2020, 7:18 AM

    @David A. Murray: Check the Stock Market there this morning for yourself

    96
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    Mute Brendan Cooney
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    Aug 19th 2020, 7:29 AM

    @Maurice O Neill: same as what happened before the last crash? And the one before,

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    Mute DJ François
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    Aug 19th 2020, 7:33 AM

    @Maurice O Neill: The stock market is booming thanks to asset purchasing by the Fed. Nothing to do with the real economy.

    52
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    Mute Seriousnojoke
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    Aug 19th 2020, 7:34 AM

    @Maurice O Neill: What about it? You invested billions in it or why do you care? Ever read a bit of something called the history in particular how the stock market bubble busted and the Great Depression happened in 1929??

    31
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    Mute DJ François
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    Aug 19th 2020, 8:55 AM

    @The Boss: Fox news talking points memo waffle.

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    Mute Lita Campbell
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    Aug 19th 2020, 10:23 AM

    @Maurice O Neill: And doesn’t that say it all as ordinary Americans are increasingly forced to use food banks and evictions are spiralling. Trump: I’m here for the rich!

    13
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    Mute BenGold
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    Aug 19th 2020, 1:59 PM

    @Maurice O Neill: check the death numbers,check the debt level,check the level of upheaval of the population !!

    4
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    Mute Sean Ryan
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    Aug 19th 2020, 8:46 AM

    Four more years of Trump it is so. Plenty of blue voters not happy with Biden.

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    Mute James Walsh
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    Aug 19th 2020, 11:50 AM

    @Sean Ryan: Plenty of moderates and independents despise Trump, no wonder he’s trying to stop them voting.

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    Mute Wayne Walsh
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    Aug 19th 2020, 8:12 AM

    Will ‘Sleepy’ Joe Biden now come out of his cave to contest the election? A wanna be one-term President just keeping the seat warm for Michelle Obama four years from now.

    46
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    Mute James Walsh
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    Aug 19th 2020, 11:54 AM

    @Wayne Walsh: Actually it’s Kamala Harris who will be in pole position in four years time.

    11
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    Mute Dave O'Keeffe
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    Aug 19th 2020, 12:30 PM

    @Wayne Walsh: eh, there’s sort of a pandemic going on. Big crowds are not a good idea. Good thing Trump supporters are taking that advice on board. RIP Herman Cain

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    Mute Al.Dunne
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    Aug 19th 2020, 12:52 PM

    @Dave O’Keeffe: unless of course u r a BLM protestor/rioter apparently the virus bypasses these justice warriors !

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    Mute James Walsh
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    Aug 19th 2020, 4:02 PM

    @Al.Dunne: Or a gun nut who wants to intimidate elected officials as happened in Michigan where hundreds showed up to threaten the governor a couple of months back.

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    Mute Al.Dunne
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    Aug 19th 2020, 5:25 PM

    @James Walsh: really that’s the best u have! Ignore the 78 days of riots in Portland and come back with 1 day a while ago these guys showed up re gun protest !
    Ignore the fact that locals in NY, Chicago, LA are asking for more police as crime/murder sky rocket
    Ignore the fact that Feds had to be deployed to protect federal building while democratic led city officials did nothing!
    People are leaving these cities in there droves , so less taxes will be paid which leads to cuts/hardship for who, in most cases the most needy in the community

    This is why Trump will win, but u will not doubt have your voter fraud excuses at the ready

    The left is eating itself and becoming more toxic as they do.

    Btw i am not a trump supporter or republican, more of a disappointed libertarian

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    Mute Dave O'Keeffe
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    Aug 19th 2020, 6:07 PM

    @Al.Dunne: PS it wasn’t a gun protest in Michigan. It was an anti-lockdown protest. The guns were irrelevant to their point, they were a show of force. Also, trust me, nobody is ignoring the fact that random anonymous soldiers showed up and beat the sh!t out of peaceful protesters. Last I checked buildings can’t move, so why were Feds assaulting people that weren’t at the building? So many twists to your nonsense.

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    Mute Dave O'Keeffe
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    Aug 19th 2020, 6:22 PM

    @Al.Dunne: there’s also a difference between a protest and the president asking people to sign a waiver to gather and hear him speak

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    Mute Al.Dunne
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    Aug 19th 2020, 7:04 PM

    @Dave O’Keeffe: it was want random soldier’s, it was clearly marked federal officers ! U r right though building don’t move, thats why he was arrested for questioning outside the court house and let go 90 mins later!

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    Mute Al.Dunne
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    Aug 19th 2020, 7:10 PM

    @Dave O’Keeffe: not sure what ur on about here !

    But I see Portland have finally declared a riot after they burnt Govt admin offices, seems after 83 days of trying to appease Antifa & radical BLM “peaceful protesters” the democrat led city is finally waking up to the fact these wanna burn it all down !

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    Mute Dave O'Keeffe
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    Aug 20th 2020, 12:45 AM

    @Al.Dunne: they were clearly marked? They had no identifying insignia. They had police patches but no names.

    1
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    Mute Dave O'Keeffe
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    Aug 20th 2020, 12:48 AM

    @Al.Dunne: I have no idea what arrest you’re talking about. I’m talking about the hundreds that were assaulted, not arrested, just beaten but anonymous people in military gear patrolling the streets. If you’re talking about the guy dragged into an unmarked van then I don’t know much about that but it does seem like 1 minute or 90 minutes or 2 days isn’t the point when you’re taken against your will and have done nothing wrong. In saying that I thought that was in NY

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    Mute Jimmy Carroll
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    Aug 19th 2020, 8:14 AM

    Yep, Joe will make a hole of it.

    35
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    Mute Al.Dunne
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    Aug 19th 2020, 12:34 PM

    @James Walsh: they had record employment b4 covid, does this not fit your narrative ?

    23
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    Mute Moss Cotter
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    Aug 19th 2020, 9:49 AM

    Team biden will push the mantra about healing America and bringing people together instead of sowing division, only thing is America was well rotten to the core ever before trump took office thanks largely to wall street owned con men like biden, trump was merely where it was always gonna lead..toxic as trump is he is not the disease but merely a symptom of it.

    37
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    Mute David Farrell
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    Aug 19th 2020, 11:41 AM

    Trump is the man !!!

    23
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    Mute matthew mc manus
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    Aug 19th 2020, 10:10 AM
    17
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    Mute Tricia G
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    Aug 19th 2020, 10:38 AM

    @matthew mc manus: Anything from after Sept 2018?

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    Mute matthew mc manus
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    Aug 19th 2020, 12:13 PM
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    Mute David OShea
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    Aug 19th 2020, 12:46 PM

    @matthew mc manus: Sad part is, the hatred for Trump that the leftist media has perpetrated has turned so many, normally moderate people, into Trump deranged sheep. If only they could see how they were being duped by the 90% leftist media. From CNN, MSNBC and NY Times to the BBC, almost all european state run media. If you watch any of those on a regular basis, you are giving away your consent to see the world from an independent angle. They all support the big war machine and big government.

    10
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    Mute Tricia G
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    Aug 19th 2020, 1:47 PM

    @David OShea: All anyone has to do to intensely dislike Trump is to LISTEN to Trump.

    No one needs to watch anything beyond that.

    And honestly, if your only argument against people that intensely dislike him is that they’re duped sheep watching the MSM then that is pretty weak.

    But I understand why you say it. You cannot defend his words or his behaviour. You can’t defend his lack of a federal response to COVID. You can’t defend his petulance. You can’t defend his ramblings, his claims to be the “smartest guy in the room” who has the “best words”. His utter lack of empathy. How he sat beside a woman telling him her entire family had been murdered and the only time he seemed interested was when he found out she’d got the Nobel Peace Prize.

    Let’s face it, I could go on. The man is an appalling human being, he has demonstrated that continuely.

    The only thing you can do is accuse people that see his behaviour as disgusting and appalling is to accuse them of being “sheep”.

    But you’re convincing no one anymore. The gas lighting can only continue to succeed for a limited time and that time is up.

    5
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    Mute Tricia G
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    Aug 19th 2020, 1:53 PM

    @matthew mc manus: You’re aware Executive Orders don’t just “make things happen” right?

    Many of them have to go to Congress (if funding is required) for example. Others will be challenged in court if they’re potentially unconstitutional.

    Trump has control of the Senate, if he really wanted to pass meaningful legislation that HELPED people (not just his cronies) it would pass Congress.

    What about the Voting Rights Act that Mitch McConnell is refusing to allow to be voted on in the Senate and the 100′s of other bills he’s deliberately holding up?

    Trump uses Executive Orders because it’s he gets to parade in front of the cameras. It is all about him.

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    Mute Dave O'Keeffe
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    Aug 19th 2020, 6:18 PM

    @matthew mc manus: White House. Gov should have been your first clue that it’s a biased source and therefore not reliable as education material.

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    Mute Modern Irish Dad
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    Aug 19th 2020, 8:30 AM

    My personal highlight of the convention https://youtu.be/c9nTxOMtbEI

    14
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    Mute Edmund Murphy
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    Aug 19th 2020, 9:37 AM

    @Modern Irish Dad: That was unexpectidly brilliant.

    7
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    Mute Modern Irish Dad
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    Aug 19th 2020, 10:00 AM

    @Edmund Murphy: sometimes it pays to hit the link most times it does not lol

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    Mute Al.Dunne
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    Aug 19th 2020, 10:31 AM

    @Modern Irish Dad: absolute cringe, looks like it was put together by first year college production team, almost like they don’t care about election
    As for “endgame” ripoff that was to sad to be funny !

    15
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    Mute Modern Irish Dad
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    Aug 19th 2020, 10:49 AM

    @Al.Dunne: Its hard to take it serious because of how it was put together, meanwhile https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/15/us/politics/trump-campaign-ads-dnc.html

    3
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    Mute David OShea
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    Aug 19th 2020, 12:35 PM

    @Modern Irish Dad: Wow, I haven’t cringed so much since Ricky Gervais and The Office.

    5
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    Mute Modern Irish Dad
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    Aug 19th 2020, 1:11 PM

    @David OShea: It appears the whole DNC was very cringe worthy.

    6
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    Mute Dave O'Keeffe
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    Aug 19th 2020, 6:26 PM

    @Modern Irish Dad: of course. But wait the Republican fire and brimstone. Warning about how Democrats will ruin the country if they’re given the chance. That doesn’t ring true for many as all they have to do is look around and then think back to 4 years ago and realise who oversaw the damage.

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    Mute Kevin50
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    Aug 19th 2020, 10:54 AM

    Election not over … remember Americans are not the most informed people

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    Mute Tricia G
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    Aug 19th 2020, 1:54 PM

    @Kevin50: There has never been a more motivated electorate in a long, long time.

    The 2018 turnout was massive.

    There is a reason Trump is trying everything to suppress voting. He knows there is a groundswell of opposition to him.

    5
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    Mute Angela McCarthy
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    Aug 19th 2020, 2:23 PM

    what I and the whole world outside of the US will want to see, is will the Trumpet show up in front of a camera and concede defeat gracefully if Biden wins?

    Or will it it be a predictable bitter battle cry of ‘Fake Election Result!

    5
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    Mute Raymond Power
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    Aug 20th 2020, 12:17 AM

    make a nation whole? the way the left got behind the present administration for the last 4 years.

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