Afternoon Round-up: “Don’t Have the Votes” Edition
Another day, another roundup of GOP division and dysfunction over TrumpCare:
HuffPost: Republicans Still Don’t Have The Votes To Replace Obamacare
“House Republican leaders, scrambling to find sufficient support for their revived health care plan, are running into the same problem they’ve had for weeks: They’re still short on the votes... According to a HuffPost whip count based on interviews with lawmakers and staffers with knowledge of the votes, there are 17 Republicans who appear firmly against the new version of the health care bill and 10 Republicans who seem to be leaning against it. There are also at least 11 other GOP lawmakers who report being undecided and could very well vote no..”
Reuters: Republicans still can’t find the support they need to overturn Obamacare
“U.S. House leaders have decided against holding a vote on a reworked healthcare system overhaul this week after failing to find the necessary support, congressional aides said on Thursday… by Thursday evening Republican leaders still had not collected enough votes from moderate Republicans whose backing was also needed for passage in the House, given united Democratic opposition. ”
Politico: Pre-existing conditions drive moderates' concern over repeal bill
“Moderate Republicans are largely withholding their support for the Obamacare repeal bill, arguing it would hurt people with pre-existing conditions. House Republican leaders hoped that the House Freedom Caucus’s endorsement of the latest Obamacare repeal bill would light a fire under enough moderates to get their whip count to the 216 votes needed to pass the measure. Instead, the holdouts are digging in, saying that the latest changes only moved the bill to the right and could put more Americans at risk of losing their health insurance.”
New York Times: In New Blow to Trump, Repeal of Health Law Fails Again
“An 11th-hour White House push to give President Trump a major legislative victory in his first 100 days in office broke down late Thursday as House Republican leaders failed to round up enough votes for their bill to repeal the Affordable Care Act… While revisions to their bill won over conservative hard-liners in the Freedom Caucus this week, those same changes threatened to drive away other members, even some who supported the first version.”
Roll Call: GOP Moderates Still Holding Out on Health Care
“Republican leaders, and the White House in particular, have hoped the House could pass its bill to overhaul the health care system before the 100th day of President Donald Trump’s presidency, which falls on Saturday. The legislative win would have been that much sweeter after the embarrassing collapse of the Republican’s first attempt at health care legislation, which Speaker Paul D. Ryan ultimately pulled from floor consideration because it lacked support. Energy and Commerce Chairman Greg Walden said late afternoon that he had not been told that the votes were secured.”
New York Times Editorial: Trumpcare 2.0: It’s Even Worse Than the Original
“…many centrist Republicans, including members of Congress and governors from swing states like Ohio, have expressed grave reservations about the House bill, in particular the attack on people with pre-existing conditions. It will be up to them to stop their party from jumping off the deep end and jeopardizing the health care of millions of Americans.”
Washington Post Editorial: Repeal and replace just got even worse
“The bill has the support of the hard-right Freedom Caucus and at least one prominent House centrist, Tom MacArthur (R-N.J.), putting the responsibility on others to halt it. As of Thursday afternoon, nearly enough had said they oppose the new bill, though the GOP’s centrists could be in for some intense arm-twisting.”