Republican leaders in Congress were jubilant after what they deemed were remarks by President Trump showing his approval to repeal and replace Obamacare. The comments were made during Trump’s first address to Congress on the February 28th. Republican conservatives who detest the party’s current leadership plan, however, saw the remarks inclined in the exact opposite direction.
Congressional Republicans have disagreed amongst themselves on the best strategy to follow concerning Obamacare. The members of Congress in the GOP hoped to get some direction on this issue from President Trump during his address. Indeed, President Trump shed some light onto the healthcare plan. He mentioned Americans using tax credits to purchase insurance, allowing insurance coverage in between states and the implementation of tort reform. Despite his remarks, the Republicans are still far from a consensus on a suitable healthcare agreement.
The proposal by the Republican party has been criticized by the party’s conservatives. They have gone further to call it “Obamacare Lite.” When asked whether he thought that the remarks made by the President were in support of the GOP House Leadership plan, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy responded with a confident “yes.”
“He said there should be tax credits, he said states should have more flexibility, he says we’ve got to [deal] with Medicaid and the transition, so what’s the Republican plan?” McCarthy said. “He just laid it out.”
Third-ranking House Republican and House Majority Whip Steve Scalise’s opinion was in line with McCarthy’s. He said that Trump’s remarks were a “clear sign” that he was working “directly” with Congressional Republicans for the drafting of the health care proposal. Scalise said, “We’ve laid out a lot of specifics, I think you saw the president embrace a lot of those key components tonight.”
Mark Sanford, however, argued differently. Mr. Sanford, together with Senator Rand Paul, have drafted a more conservative healthcare plan to replace Obamacare. When asked for his opinion on Mr. McCarthy’s comments, he said, “We all hear what we want to hear in life. What I heard Trump say was something very similar to what Sen. Paul and I introduced. The leader must be hearing something a little different.”
The representative for Ohio Republican Jim Jordan also greatly refuted remarks that President Trump had approved of the Obamacare leadership plan. When questioned, Jordan said, “No, I did not hear that. I heard repeal and replace, which is what we all campaigned on.”
Conservatives were discussing President Trump’s details on healthcare even before the speech ended. They agreed that his remarks about buying insurance using tax credits and giving states flexibility on Medicaid were not in support for the Leadership plan.
With varying opinions on the President’s remarks on healthcare, there is one unifying factor for the Republicans- replacing Obamacare. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says he wants a health plan drafted that “helps” Republicans come together. The Representative for Kentucky is to summon his 52-member conference on Wednesday. The meeting will only be for senators and is aimed at reaching an agreement on Obamacare.
On an interview with CNN, Mr. McConnell said, “Obviously, we believe it has to be changed in a way consistent with many of the things the president recommended tonight, and we anticipate coming up with a proposal that the speaker, myself and the president all agree on and then trying to sell to our own members, because we anticipate no Democratic support for replacing this monstrosity.”
