Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) was asked what Republicans are voting next week in the Senate on healthcare, and his nearly five-minute answer on process avoided the basic question and showed that even Senate Republicans have no idea what they are getting into. They are going to throw a bunch of amendments against the wall and see what sticks.
Video:
When Alisyn asked @BillCassidy what the Senate is voting on re: health care, his answer was, well, "complicated": https://t.co/4xD0UKYTEM
— New Day (@NewDay) July 21, 2017
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Sen. Cassidy didn’t want to discuss the consequences of the Republican legislation, so he filibustered and his behind the process. Cassidy also never answered the question of what the Senate will be voting on next week. He took the CNN host on a process voyage that buried her question.
What Sen. Cassidy was pushing on CNN’s New Day was his amendment with Sen. Lindsey Graham that would shove all of the blame for people losing their health care on to the states. Cassidy said, “Who do you think is more accountable to a woman whose child is born with a certain condition? A president who’s the president of over 310 million people, or a governor, who is up for reelection in two years? I would argue the governor.”
For Senate Republicans, like Cassidy, the discussion isn’t about who has healthcare or what it covers. The question that they are trying to answer is who is going to take the blame for 22 million people losing their health insurance. Senate Republicans want it to be governors. Meanwhile, the governors, both Republican and Democratic, want nothing to do with this scheme to pass the buck.
Sen. Cassidy’s answer revealed that he has no idea what Republicans are going to be doing next week. They are voting on all of their ideas in the hope that they can pass something.
When Congress has to vote on dozens of ideas because they can’t agree on one, it is a sign that there is no legislation that can pass.
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
