In an interview with NPR late last year, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell announced the Senate would turn away from pursuing Obamacare repeal through budget reconciliation in 2018 and “probably move on to other issues.”
Indeed, as the second session of the 115th Congress gets underway, there have been many statements from both the Trump administration and congressional leadership about bipartisan approaches on spending, infrastructure, and agriculture policy.
These may be goals that are easier to achieve, but turning away from Obamacare repeal is both bad policy and political folly.
To paraphrase Boromir from "Lord of the Rings," one does not simply walk away from Obamacare repeal.
Despite Congress’ repeated failure last year to repeal the law, members were able to achieve a smaller policy victory by repealing the individual mandate through the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. As a constitutional matter, this was a solid win for the rule of law and a sharp rebuke to the Supreme Court’s 2012 decision to define the mandate as a tax.
Indeed, as the second session of the 115th Congress gets underway, there have been many statements from both the Trump administration and congressional leadership about bipartisan approaches on spending, infrastructure, and agriculture policy.
These may be goals that are easier to achieve, but turning away from Obamacare repeal is both bad policy and political folly.
To paraphrase Boromir from "Lord of the Rings," one does not simply walk away from Obamacare repeal.
Despite Congress’ repeated failure last year to repeal the law, members were able to achieve a smaller policy victory by repealing the individual mandate through the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. As a constitutional matter, this was a solid win for the rule of law and a sharp rebuke to the Supreme Court’s 2012 decision to define the mandate as a tax.
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