ELIJAH CUMMINGS COMES AROUND

ONE NICE THING THAT HAPPENED IN DC YESTERDAY

It was heartwarming to learn that yesterday (Wednesday March 8, 2017) Congressman Elijah Cummings (D Md) and Peter Welch (D VT) met with President Trump at the White House to confer on issues of drug pricing. Congressman Cummings brought with him a new bill entitled "The Medical Drug Price Negotiating Act of 2017" on which the congressman sought feedback and support for this bill.

Both Cummings and President Trump have been critics of high drug prices (and of each other). However, they both, rightly, want to serve the nation. Trump claimed during the campaign that " drug makers were "getting away with murder" and expressed an interest in using his negotiation and deal making skills to lower prices. While Cummings has been a long time critic of the pharma industry. The Democrat congressman from Baltimore, head of the Black Caucus and ranking Democrat on the Ways and Means Committee has in the past supported a bill that would allow for drugs to be imported from Canada where prices are much lower. He also criticized the profits and high prices of American drugs. The hour-long meeting at the White House had been scheduled for weeks (according to the Baltimore Sun ) but according to the President Cummings had put it off "for political reasons". But both men overcame party politics, petty grievances, and on Mr Cummings side, the stiff pressure from his colleagues to shun Mr. Trump. The meeting finally came to pass and to good purpose. For both men have set a precedent to be emulated and that something may actually get done to control the cost of drugs for the elderly and needy.

Cummings was questioned on Morning Joe about his feelings about encountering Trump, said he was unsure of what would happen, but he cleared the air, telling the President that his comments about crime in urban areas "was hurtful" to blacks". He seemed positive about the meeting responding to queries on that subject by claiming that "the meeting went well". He was surprised at how much the President knew about the drug pricing problem and that he was genuinely interested in cooperation. After the meeting the President tweeted the same saying he had a "good meeting" with Cummings.

Both men put aside their personal axes to bring and began working for the good of the nation...something the rest of Washington should begin to emulate.

For the rest of us this was a pleasant --a sanguine development-- for for those of us who supported Mr. Trump as a candidate and saw in him the potential for just such interactions.