IS THIS A GOOD IDEA? – AT 10:20 A.M. ET:  President Trump, using Twitter (ugh!) just ripped into the GOP's Freedom Caucus.  From Fox: 

President Donald Trump just took to Twitter to go after the conservative House Freedom Caucus.

"The Freedom Caucus will hurt the entire Republican agenda if they don't get on the team, & fast. We must fight them, & Dems, in 2018!" he wrote.

The caucus, chaired by Rep. Mark Meadows (R-NC), opposed the American Health Care Act, which was championed by Trump and House Speaker Paul Ryan.

The bill died on Friday without a vote due to opposition from the caucus members and some moderate Republicans.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) reacted on "America's Newsroom," telling Shannon Bream that he believes the president must put partisanship aside to address health care.

He advised the president to allow ObamaCare to collapse, then reach out to both sides of the aisle to replace the law with something better.

Graham said one-fifth of the nation's economy cannot be reformed using only Republican votes.

"Challenge Democrats to help you fix their mess. ... Put America first and we'll all be OK. Don't let partisanship take over health care."

Later in the show, caucus member Jim Jordan (R-OH) reacted, saying that the health care bill was contrary to the Freedom Caucus' mission to "change Washington."

"We appreciate the president, we're trying to help the president. But look at the legislation. It doesn't do what we told the voters we were gonna do," said Jordan, noting the bill was polling at just 17 percent.

COMMENT:  Was it really necessary for the president to slam the Freedom Caucus that way?  Washington is not the New York real estate industry, which is known for its coarseness.  Trump should be trying to bring the Freedom Caucus on board by showing sensitivity to its concerns.  Slamming them will only raise their anger.

I wish Twitter had never been invented. 

The president said earlier in the week that he'll soon have a new health plan, and will get it passed.  Maybe it's time for some honey.  There's plenty of time for vinegar if the honey doesn't work. 

Trying to peel off some Dems is a good idea, although the Democratic Party is today wracked with fear and intimidation.  It's so-called "base" is mean-spirited, rigid, fierce, and totalitarian.  Other than that, it's lovely.

March 30,  2017