Behind closed doors, Republican lawmakers fret about how to repeal Obamacare

[DonViejo]

Source: The Washington Post


By Mike DeBonis January 27 at 1:35 PM

PHILADELPHIA — Republican lawmakers aired sharp concerns about their party’s quick push to repeal the Affordable Care Act inside a closed-door meeting Thursday, according to a recording of the session obtained by The Washington Post. The recording reveals a GOP that appears to be filled with doubts about how to make good on a long-standing promise to get rid of Obamacare without explicit guidance from President Trump or his administration.

Senators and House members expressed a range of concerns about the task ahead: how to prepare a replacement plan that can be ready to launch at the time of repeal; how to avoid deep damage to the health insurance market; how to keep premiums affordable for middle-class families; even how to avoid the political consequences of defunding Planned Parenthood, the women’s health-care organization, as many Republicans hope to do with the repeal of the ACA.

“We’d better be sure that we’re prepared to live with the market we’ve created [with repeal],” said Rep. Tom McClintock (R-Calif.). “That’s going to be called Trumpcare. Republicans will own that lock, stock and barrel, and we’ll be judged in the election less than two years away.”

Recordings of closed sessions at the Republican policy retreat in Philadelphia this week were sent late Thursday to The Washington Post and several other news outlets from an anonymous email address. The remarks of all lawmakers quoted in this story were confirmed by their offices or by the lawmakers themselves.

Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/behind-closed-doors-republican-lawmakers-fret-about-how-to-repeal-obamacare/2017/01/27/deabdafa-e491-11e6-a547-5fb9411d332c_story.html?hpid=hp_no-name_no-name%3Apage%2Fbreaking-news-bar&tid=a_breakingnews&utm_term=.31e46ed7dc20

[tenorly]

1. They're probably busy shaking insurers down.

Behind closed doors, of course.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

3. Actually, insurers are shaking them down. Want us to move our HQ? Wanna keep getting donations? nt

[tenorly]

8. It's a mutual - yet lopsided - shakedown.

Insurers need amenable congresscritters much more than the latter need their donations - for which they have so many corporate sources already.

[northoftheborder]

2. Just now thinking of that?

After dozens of votes to eliminate "Obamacare"? They've had PLENTY of time to improve or come up with an alternative. Pathetic demagogues.

Keep up the phone calls to Reps.

[C_U_L8R]

4. They've had eight years to come up with one idea

Odds are they just don't have any ideas at all.

[riversedge]

5. But it will be repealed. That is a given

[Botany]

6. Well it is going to be a good plan and evrybody is going to be covered too..

..... rinse lather and repeat.

[7962]

14. I used to holler about that all the time "Replace it....with WHAT???"

Just SHOW ME.

[Dave Starsky]

16. They've had a lot longer than that.

This whole push to reform health care goes back to at least the early 1990s when Hillary was working on it. One could even it goes back earlier to the mid-80s when the HMO Act was passed.

Republicans have been "working" on this shit for 30 years and have absolutely nothing to show for it. They WANT to keep the status quo of "your money or your life" going in America. It's what makes their tiny dicks rock hard.

[Blue Idaho]

7. Let Freedom Ring!

We need to hold these heros high - people willing to risk everything to make sure that we the people know what these fucking republicans are doing behind closed doors. Republicans need to know that no matter how hard they try to silence the news - it will always find its way into the light.

They own healthcare lock stock and barrel - don't let them or anyone else forget it.

[Auntie Bush]

9. The fools in charge now had 8 years to figure out how to repeal and replace Obamacare.

Now they can't figure out how.
They are literally fools.

[harun]

10. They never come up with any governing plans. That's what the Heritage Foundation is for.

[urgk]

11. If that's what "fret" means...

...I think I almost fretted once from some serious food poisoning. Which was particularly concerning because I was visiting for the weekend and those were the only clean pants I had.

[mwooldri]

12. I'm no good at drawing so try to imagine this.

Picture the problem with health care as a grenade. Picture the Affordable Care Act as being the pin in the grenade that stops it from exploding. Repeal of the ACA is equivalent to pulling out the ACA pin of the health care grenade, and whoever is holding that grenade when it goes off is going to get hurt, along with a load of innocent Americans. It doesn't matter if it is being pulled out slowly or quickly.... pull the pin from a grenade, it will blow up.

[Skittles]

13. republicans, failing to think things through

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

[Bernardo de La Paz]

15. They have a plan: go to the Emergency Room and squeeze the hospitals. . . nt

[lark]

17. GOP Healthcare plan,

No taxes on the rich.
Poor need to stay healthy.
If they do get sick, they should die quickly.

Paraphrasing Allan Grayson. He may have less than stellar character, but he got this totally right.

[elleng]

18. Wed better be sure that were prepared to live with the market weve created ,

said Rep. Tom McClintock (R-Calif.). “That’s going to be called Trumpcare. Republicans will own that lock, stock and barrel, and we’ll be judged in the election less than two years away.”

Recordings of closed sessions at the Republican policy retreat in Philadelphia this week were sent late Thursday to The Washington Post and several other news outlets from an anonymous email address. The remarks of all lawmakers quoted in this story were confirmed by their offices or by the lawmakers themselves.'

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

19. Meaning

They don't know what the fuck they're doing