By Brandon Moseley
Alabama Political Reporter
Thursday, March 23, 2017, the House of Representatives is expected to vote on the House plan to repeal and replace the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010. No Democrats are expected to vote for the American Health Care Act, so keeping as many Republican votes as possible is essential to passage.
US Representative Mo Brooks (R-Huntsville) announced on Wednesday, “I will vote against the House GOP healthcare/welfare plan this week because it does not deliver on the promise I made to Alabamians to deliver a clean repeal of Obamacare. Instead, this legislation creates a huge new welfare program. Over the long haul that’s going to result in either higher premiums, higher taxes, or greater deficit and debt that’s going to burden our economy for decades to come.”
US Representative Bradley Byrne (R-Montrose) supports the American Health Care Act. Congressman Byrne said, “Through conversations with the White House and Congress, we have made some changes to make the American Health Care Act an even better bill. This bill repeals Obamacare, along with all the mandates and tax hikes. With these changes, we make sure older Americans are taken care of and that the tax cuts happen sooner. We cannot pass up this opportunity to repeal and replace Obamacare.”
President Donald J. Trump (R) is urging Republicans to vote for the plan. President Trump said in a speech in Kentucky on Monday, “Finally, we want a very big tax cut, but cannot do that until we keep our promise to repeal and replace the disaster known as Obamacare. And we’re going to be working very closely with our leader, Mitch McConnell, to get that job done. Paul Ryan, everybody, they’re going to be working very hard. And Congressman Andy Barr, Jamie Comer — I have to thank them for their help and their support as we move toward the crucial House vote on Thursday, the seventh anniversary of Obamacare’s very painful passage.
This is our long-awaited chance to finally get rid of Obamacare. It’s a long-awaited chance. We’re going to do it. We’re going to do it. What’s the alternative? The alternative is what you have — what you have is nothing. The worst. It’s the big lie.”
Trump added, “It’s important to realize how we got to Obamacare in the first place. Back in 2009 or 2010, House and Senate Democrats forced through a 2,700-page healthcare bill that no one read and no one understood. By the way, today it’s thousands of pages more. It’s not even understandable. They ignored the public, they ignored the voters, and they jammed a massive failed healthcare takeover right through Congress. And this is what we have. It’s time for Democrat leaders in Washington to take responsibility for the disaster they and they alone created. Remember when President Obama said, if you like your plan you can keep your plan; if you like your doctor, you can keep your doctor? Nobody brings that stuff up, do they? Do they ever bring it up? Matt, I don’t think so, right? They don’t bring it up. Notice how they forget all those things. Or when the architect of Obamacare said the law was passed because of the stupidity of the American voter.”
Breitbart’s Neil W. McCade is reporting that a spokeswoman for the House Freedom Caucus told Breitbart News the technical and Medicare-related changes to the RyanCare bill up for a House floor vote Thursday will not save the bill from defeat. Alyssa Farah said, “The amendments offered by Republican leadership do little to address the serious concerns of House conservatives. At this time, the bill does not have the votes to pass.”
Farah said, “The Freedom Caucus will continue to work with House colleagues, the Senate, and the White House to find a path forward that works for the American people.”
Congressmen Mo Brooks and Gary Palmer (R-Hoover) are both members of the ultra-conservative House Freedom Caucus.
