Republicans Scramble To Revise Obamacare Repeal Bill As Defeat Looms
by Tyler Durden
ZeroHedge.com
Sep 25, 2017
After Texas Senator Ted Cruz revealed Sunday that he wouldn’t support Graham-Cassidy, effectively quashing the Republicans’ chances of repealing and replacing Obamacare before the crucial Sept. 30 deadline, Bloomberg reported that the GOP senate leadership was scrambling late Sunday to revise the bill to win support from a small but critical group of holdout senators and secure the 50 votes needed to allow the tie-breaking vote in favor cast by Vice President Mike Pence.
Cruz, who had previously said he supported a system of scrapping the Obamacare Medicaid expansion in favor of providing block grants to states, the crux of the Graham-Cassidy, told a crowd in Texas that he had changed his mind, but didn’t elaborate as to why. Meanwhile, Senator Rand Paul took to the Sunday shows to reiterate that he’s against the bill because he believes block grants would foster infighting over funding between the states.
Some of the changes, which come as the Sept. 30 expiration of the fast-track provision that forestalls a Democratic filibuster, are designed to appeal to moderate holdouts like Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, while others appeared tailored to lure conservative skeptics like Rand Paul of Kentucky. Trump has vowed to win the support of the Kentucky senator, although some theorize that, since the current system is popular in Paul’s home state, that he will invent libertarian-sounding objections to any bill the Republicans present.
But even if GOP leadership manages to change a handful of votes, the bill’s chances of passing remain low, virtually guaranteeing that the Republicans will be forced to accept the status quo after seven years of campaigning to scrap Obamacare. And although the GOP could still try to resurrect the health-care effort later this year, the effort’s collapse will raise serious doubts about Congressional Republicans’ ability to win legislative battles on behalf of the president.
As Bloomberg points out, even Trump appeared to concede that the outlook for repeal isn’t great, admitting as much during a press conference with reporters.
“Eventually we will win on that. My primary focus, I must tell you – has been from the beginning, as you can imagine – is taxes.”
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