To say the least, conservatives are not pleased with the Republicans’ Obamacare replacement bill, which has been deemed “Obamacare lite.” Which raises the question: whose bill exactly is this?
Rep. Kevin Brady (R-TX) seems to have the answer:
“The president made it very clear: this is his bill,” @RepKevinBrady says of AHCA pic.twitter.com/a75oJmtoE9
— Mike Memoli (@mikememoli) March 7, 2017
Yes, the bill that repeals very little of Obamacare belongs to President Donald Trump, who repeatedly vowed to repeal and replace Obamacare throughout the campaign.
That answer appears to align with the response of Trump, who seems to have gone “all in” on the bill, according to White House counselor Kellyanne Conway. Additionally, The Washington Post reports that Trump wants the bill to remain “largely intact,” warning Republicans that they could face a “bloodbath” in the 2018 midterm elections if they don’t repeal and replace the highly unpopular Obamacare.
Trump is reportedly trying to sell the bill to conservative organizations as well as Sens. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Lindsey Graham (R-SC). Trump has also tweeted the following to Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), who has been incredibly critical of the replacement bill:
I feel sure that my friend @RandPaul will come along with the new and great health care program because he knows Obamacare is a disaster!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 8, 2017
The “Trumpcare” bill embody what conservatives feared about a Trump presidency: that his lack of conservative principles would spill over into crucial policy areas such as repealing and replacing Obamacare. The hope was that Speaker of the House Paul Ryan and conservatives in Congress would be able to hold Trump’s non-conservative tendencies in check, but Ryan has yet to show a spine as Speaker. It remains to be seen if there are enough conservatives in Congress to derail the bill.
For more on why the Obamacare replacement bill is a disaster, read Ben Shapiro’s piece here.