Last updated on July 17th, 2023 at 09:31 pm
While Republicans are admitting that ACA repeal is not going be as easy as they thought, Democrats and liberals are already mobilizing for political war to protect the 22 million Americans who got access to affordable healthcare via Obamacare.
“We’ve got the battle of our lifetime ahead of us,†Ron Pollack, executive director of advocacy group Families USA, said the day after Donald Trump was elected on a pledge to repeal the Affordable Care Act, which now the law that covers 22 million people. “We’re going to have a huge number of organizations from all across the country that will participate in this effort.”
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Democratic aides on Capitol Hill said it was too early to have concrete plans but that defending Obamacare was a top goal. The law brought uninsurance rates to record lows, and many people have gotten financial help to get covered.
“Sen. Schumer and Senate Democrats are interested in ways to improve the Affordable Care Act. But we will fight tooth and nail against any attempt to repeal it,†a senior Senate Democratic aide told POLITICO, referring to incoming Minority Leader Chuck Schumer.
Now, that they have won the election. Republicans are facing some of the same problems that they have not been able to find a solution to for years on the ACA. First, Republicans and Trump can’t pass a single bill to repeal the whole law. Republicans are also mired in fighting over what to replace the ACA with. Lastly, some Republicans in Congress don’t want to deal with the consequences of taking healthcare away from 22 million Americans.
Throw into this mix a unified Democratic front that is out to protect those 22 million covered Americans, and the result is a political minefield that could be hazardous for Trump and the GOP congressional majority.
Republicans have run and won elections for years on the idea of repealing Obamacare. Repealing the law will not only take away a powerful political issue from the Republican Party, but it will also return a powerful issue to Democrats. Before the ACA, Democrats ran for years on the need to expand access to healthcare. Liberals and Democrats will pummel Republicans in 2018 and 2020 if they take health care away from tens of millions of Americans.
In other words, Republicans can’t deliver on their full promise to repeal the ACA, and what they do accomplish might end up being an act of political suicide.
Instead of laying down after an election defeat, Democrats and liberals are gearing up for total political war. The honeymoon is over before it ever started for President-elect Donald Trump.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
