Senate Republicans have distanced themselves from former President Donald Trump’s call to repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as Obamacare, if the GOP regains control of the White House and Senate in 2025.
What Happened: Despite Trump’s push for a renewed effort to repeal the ACA, Senate Republicans are not on board. They are instead focusing on healthcare reforms to reduce costs, reported The Hill on Monday.
Trump’s stance on the ACA has created a divide within the GOP, with potential presidential nominee and congressional Republicans at odds over the issue. This has provided Democrats with an opportunity to highlight healthcare in the 2024 election.
Senate Republicans, including Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), have made it clear that the war on the ACA is over. McConnell stated that the issue is “largely over,” and Thune, who is vying to succeed McConnell, also downplayed the possibility of prioritizing the repeal of the ACA in 2025.
People have moved to a different place," Murkowski said.
"If you were to walk into the room and say my number one priority is to repeal and replace ObamaCare, I think you're going to have half the people say, ‘What? Why? Huh?'
"It is not the rallying cry it once was," she said.
"Let's not walk that plank again."
Despite the GOP’s focus on healthcare reforms, polls show that voters trust Democrats more than Republicans to handle healthcare. This has led Senate Republicans to believe that Trump’s renewed push to repeal the ACA is not in their best political interest.
Why It Matters: The critique on Obamacare is noteworthy as it harks back to Trump's initial efforts to roll back Obamacare in 2017. Despite securing votes in the U.S. House of Representatives, the bill faced opposition in the Senate due to its potential to leave millions of Americans uninsured.
In September, Vivek Ramaswamy criticized former President Trump for failing to fulfill his promise of revamping Obamacare. "My friend Donald Trump promised us: repeal and replace Obamacare. Eight years later, did it happen? No, it did not. It is a false promise if it is contingent on Congress,” Ramaswamy stated during an event in Columbus, Ohio.
According to Real Clear Politics, at the national level, Trump held 47.6% support among voters, While Biden trailed with 45.8% support.
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