Toomey maintains health care battle isn’t over

not seem to expect imminent action this time. Health care discussions would be in “the background,” he told Mr. Giordano, adding that “next week we’re going to move on to a couple other things,” including authorizing defense spending and confirming judicial nominees.

Democrats “won yesterday,” he said. “We were not able to move ahead, so now let’s see what ideas they are willing to offer.”

Mr. Toomey’s Democratic counterpart, Sen. Bob Casey, issued a post-vote statement that seemed game. “It’s now time for Democrats and Republicans to work together on common-sense solutions that will make our health care system more affordable and bring down costs,” it said.

On Mr. Giordano’s show, Mr. Toomey also professed himself to be “very, very disappointed” with President Donald Trump’s social-media attacks on his own attorney general, former Sen. Jeff Sessions.

Mr. Trump reportedly soured on Mr. Sessions after he recused himself from an ongoing investigation of ties between the Trump campaign and Russian efforts to interfere with the 2016 election. Mr. Toomey is hawkish on Russia, and Mr. Sessions recently visited Philadelphia to decry “sanctuary cities” that limit cooperation between local police and immigration officials. Mr. Toomey is a vocal opponent of such policies.

“I hope the president understands that we’re not going to confirm some new attorney general if Jeff Sessions is somehow fired or forced to resign,” Mr. Toomey said. “That’s gonna be a real problem, and it’s just a bad idea for the president to be going down this path.”