President Trump harkened back to his days on "The Apprentice" Wednesday, telling Republican senators that if they didn't repeal and replace Obamacare they could hear, "You're fired" at their next election.
"Inaction is not an option, and frankly, I don't think we should leave town unless we have a health insurance plan," he said at a lunch with Senate Republicans hastily called after they failed to find 50 votes to move forward with two different approaches to Obamacare earlier this week.
The move was fraught with risk. Senators do not take kindly to being lectured, especially by someone who has shown little engagement with policy details at stake in the healthcare fight. In the last two days, Trump has called for repeal and replace, full repeal, and letting Obamacare collapse under its own weight.
Trump has also called for reforms that most experts do not believe can be enacted through the reconciliation process Republicans are relying on to bypass Democratic filibusters. But after Senate Republicans left their lunch with the president, they revived their push for a vote next week on a partial repeal and replace bill (a Wednesday evening meeting of senators giving it one more try had been scheduled before the White House event).
"Any senator who votes against starting debate is really telling America that you're fine with Obamacare," Trump told the assembled Republicans.
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05.07.2024