2 more in GOP say no to bill in Senate
Move seemingly ends bid to kill Obamacare
WASHINGTON — Republican efforts to replace the Affordable Care Act collapsed in the Senate on Monday evening as two more GOP senators announced they would oppose the latest plan backed by their party’s leadership.
The announcements by Sens. Mike Lee of Utah and Jerry Moran of Kansas brought to four the number of Republican senators opposed to bringing the bill to the Senate floor for debate. With all Senate Democrats against the bill, their opposition was enough to kill the current measure.
Though it had been unclear whether Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell would be able to marshal the support needed from his 52-seat majority, the abrupt failure of the GOP measure marked another defeat in the years-long effort by Republicans to repeal Obamacare.
Conservative senators complained the bill did not go far enough in gutting Obamacare, and centrists remained worried about the steep cuts to Medicaid. Before Monday’s defections, two Republicans — Susan Collins of Maine and Rand Paul of Kentucky — already had said they would vote against the bill.
Now conservative and centrist opponents and President Donald Trump appear to agree that the best option is starting over.
Trump tweeted Monday night: “Republicans should just REPEAL failing ObamaCare now & work on a new Healthcare Plan that will start from a clean slate. Dems will join in!”
Moran said in a statement that “we should not put our stamp of approval on bad policy. We must now start fresh.”
Lee said that he opposed the plan because it would not lower costs for healthy Americans whose insurance premiums were pushed up by the need to subsidize costs for those who were ill.
“In addition to not repealing all of the Obamacare taxes, it doesn’t go far enough in lowering premiums for middle class families; nor does it create enough free space from the most costly Obamacare regulations,” Lee said in a statement, referring to the current bill.
The sudden announcement from Lee, a leading conservative, and Moran, who headed the Senate Republican campaign committee in the 2014 election, came as Trump was dining at the White House with several GOP supporters of the bill. That timing made their announcements a more stinging rebuke of the White House’s efforts on behalf of the measure.
The White House vowed to fight on. “Inaction is not an option,” said a spokesman. “We look forward to Congress continuing to work toward a bill the president can sign to end the Obamacare nightmare and restore quality care at affordable prices.”
The Senate bill, like an earlier version that barely passed the House, eliminated mandates and taxes under Obamacare, and unraveled an expansion of the Medicaid health care program for the poor and disabled. But for conservatives, it didn’t go far enough in delivering on Republican Party promises to undo Obama’s law, while moderates viewed the bill as too extreme in yanking coverage from millions.
McConnell’s latest version aimed to satisfy both camps, by incorporating language by Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas allowing insurers to sell skimpy plans alongside more robust ones and by adding billions to treat opioid addiction and to defray consumer costs.
There was no immediate reaction from McConnell’s office. But Democrats could barely contain their glee.
“This second failure of Trumpcare is proof positive that the core of this bill is unworkable,” said Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York. “Rather than repeating the same failed, partisan process yet again, Republicans should start from scratch and work with Democrats on a bill that lowers premiums, provides long-term stability to the markets and improves our health care system.”
McConnell had delayed a vote this week on the bill because of surgery to Arizona Sen. John McCain. McCain, 80, was “sounding strong” Monday as he recovered from surgery to remove a blood clot above an eye, his closest Republican colleague said Monday.
“They found the spot and it looks like everything is going to be A-OK,” South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham told reporters after speaking to McCain.
Trump had just begun ramping up his efforts to lobby GOP senators. After being largely absent from the legislative process in recent weeks, the president called wayward Republican senators, including Lee, over the weekend.
McConnell could now attempt to pull together a new version of the legislation, but Moran’s call for a fresh start indicated that he, at least, would be difficult to sway.
And beyond the four announced opponents, several other Republican senators had strong doubts about the bill. Earlier in the day, Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, one of the Senate’s most conservative members, had said he might oppose the bill.