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House Democrats held a news conference to claim a "victory for the Affordable Care Act", after the Republicans' decided to pull their healthcare bill ahead of a scheduled vote. (Reuters)

Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.), a freshman from a safe seat in Chicagos suburbs, was just about to deliver his speech against theAmerican Health Care Act when he heard a commotion on the House floor. The bill was being pulled. Democrats, who up until that moment thought the Republicans might yank a rabbit out of the hat, began celebrating, andKrishnamoorthi thought back to election night, when he learned that he would be coming to Washington with President Trump.

I thought this repeal bill would sail through, he said. It was the presidents number one priority. And what was incredible about this process was the phone calls we had 1,959 phone calls in opposition to the American Health Care Act. We had 30 for it.

On Friday afternoon, as congressional Democrats learned that the GOP had essentially given up on repealing the Affordable Care Act, none of them took the credit. They had never really cohered around an anti-AHCA message. (As recently as Wednesday, House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi was still using the phrase make America sick again, which most Democrats had abandoned.) Theyd been sidelined legislatively, as Republicans tried to pass a bill on party lines. Theyd never called supporters to the Capitol for a show of force, as Republicans had done, several times, during the 2009-2010 fight to pass the Affordable Care Act.

Instead, Democrats watched as a roiling, well-organized resistance bombarded Republicans with calls and filled their town hall meetings with skeptics. TheIndivisible coalition, founded after the 2016 election by former congressional aides who knew how to lobby their old bosses, was the newest and flashiest. But it was joined by MoveOn, which reported 40,000 calls to congressional offices from its members; by Planned Parenthood, directly under the AHCAs gun; by the Democratic National Committee, fresh off a divisive leadership race; and by the AARP, which branded the bill as an age tax before Democrats had come up with a counterattack.

Congressional Democrats did prime the pump. After their surprise 2016 defeat, they made Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) the outreach director of the Senate caucus. Sanderss first project was Our First Stand, a series of rallies around the country, organized by local Democrats and following a simple format. Elected officials would speak; they would then pass the microphone to constituents who had positive stories to tell about the ACA.

What were starting to do, for the first time in the modern history of the Democratic Party, is active grass-roots organizing, Sanders said in a January interview. Were working with unions, were working with senior groups, and were working with health-care groups. Were trying to rally the American people so we can do what they want. And that is not the repeal of the Affordable Care Act.

The turnout for the rallies exceeded expectations, though their aggregate total, over 70-odd cities, would be dwarfed by the Womens March one week later. More importantly, they proved thatthere was a previously untapped well of goodwill for the ACA which had polled negatively for seven years and it smoothed over divisions inside the party. Days after Barack Obama had blamed Bernie Sanders supporters for undermining support for the ACA, Sanders was using his campaign mailing list to save the law.

It was the town halls, and the stories, that convinced me that people might actually stop this bill, said Tom Perriello, a former Democratic congressman now running an insurgent campaign for governor of Virginia, with his career-ending vote for the ACA front and center.

The outsider approach to lobbying grew from there, in ways that quickly came to worry Republicans. Indivisible-affiliated groups advertised congressional town halls and flooded them. Like the Jan. 14 rallies, the town hall tactic mirrored what the tea party movement did in 2009. Like the Democrats of that year, many Republicans responded glibly, blaming out-of-state (or district) rabble-rousers and searching for the invisible hand of George Soros. Among the Republicans who took the protests seriously was Rep. Mo Brooks (R-Ala.), who would go on to oppose AHCA from the right.

I dont know if were going to be able to repeal Obamacare now because these folks who support Obamacare are very active, Brooks told a radio host in February. Theyre putting pressure on congressman and theres not a counter-effort to steel the spine of some of these congressmen in tossup districts around the country.

Beltway groups were helping organize the opposition, and did not pretend otherwise. But they were effective because they had actual grass-roots buy-in. Elizabeth Juviler co-founded anIndivisible groupin the district of Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen (R-N.J.). Hed never taken a position against the party, Juviler said in an interview. By all accounts, hes an affable person, but he wasnt accessible.

The group, NJ11th for Change, birddogged the Republican congressman with two tactics. First, it held mock town hall events in all four of the counties he represented. Thousands of people showed, according to Juviler; all were informed of how to call his office. When the health-care bill was dropped,Frelinghuysen was besieged with calls. And on Friday, he announced that he would oppose AHCA. According to Joe Dinkin, a spokesman for the Working Families Party, there were dozens of stories like that.

For the first time in a long time, a pretty sizable number of Republicans were more scared of grass-roots energy of the left than of primaries on the right, said Dinkin.

Helpless to defeat the bill with their numbers and not even consulted by Republicans who intended to push it through Democrats counted on the grass-roots energy to grind the majority down. There was no big rally at the Capitol, because the activism in districts was seen as more effective.

Those big rallies get a lot of media coverage, but theyre not effective, said Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.), the co-chairman of the Congressional Progressive Caucus.

This week, as Republicans fumbled the AHCA, Democrats held relatively low-key events to draw attention to their fight. At each, they credited activists with slowing down the bill and derided Republicans for being led by Trumps whims.

Organizers had a first victory today, said Rep. Primila Jayapal (D-Wash.), at a small CPC rally after the bills delay Thursday. Across the country, they pummeled Republicans for this horrible bill.

And when the bill was pulled, Pelosi joined a rally of just a few dozen people across from the Capitol, organized by MoveOn.org. She took off her heels and led the crowd in a literal jump for joy, as the members of her emboldened caucus began fundraising off the Republican failure.

You organized across the country, read a fundraising email from Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.) after the vote. You showed up to Republicans townhalls and told them your stories about the ACA saving your life. You called your Representatives and asked them to vote no. Members of Congress reported receiving thousands of calls from constituents almost uniformly against repeal.

Link:
Left out of AHCA fight, Democrats let their grass roots lead and win - Washington Post

"I don't think that one party's going to be able to fix this by themselves," the South Carolina Republican said Saturday at a town hall event. "I think the President should reach out to Democrats, I should reach out to Democrats, and we should say, 'Let's take a shot at doing this together because it ain't working doing it by ourselves.'"

After Republicans were forced to pull their bill to replace Obamacare from the floor of the GOP-controlled House on Friday, Trump blamed Democrats and vowed to let Obamacare "explode."

"We had no Democrat support. We had no votes from the Democrats," Trump said. "They weren't going to give us a single vote, so it's a very, very difficult thing to do. I think the losers are (House Minority Leader) Nancy Pelosi and (Senate Minority Leader) Chuck Schumer because now they own Obamacare. 100% own it."

Graham has been a frequent critic of the Affordable Care Act and reinforced that Saturday.

"Here's what I think about health care: Obamacare is a disaster and it's going to collapse," he said at the Columbia, South Carolina, event, drawing boos from the crowd.

But the long-serving senator said the Trump administration is going to have to learn to work with Democrats if it wants to implement its vision for this country.

"At my core, I'm a fiscal and social conservative, but here's what I believe -- I can't run the country by myself, and we have to work together," he said. "If you want to save this country from becoming Greece, you need Republicans and Democrats to work together to reform entitlement programs before it's too late."

Sen. Bob Corker, a member of the Budget Committee, made a similar point Friday.

"At some point, on behalf of the American people, we have to resolve the issues that are driving up costs, limiting choices, and causing the individual market to spiral downward," the Tennessee Republican said. "I stand ready to work with the administration and my colleagues on both sides of the aisle in order to fix our broken health care system."

Graham, who has long called for an investigation into Russia's involvement in the 2016 election, also said Saturday that politicians should not hamper that investigation.

"We've learned that the FBI is investigating Trump campaign operatives for potential ties to Russia," he said. "Here's my belief: It goes where it goes. No politicians should stand in the way. We should let the FBI do their job. And what happens happens."

On Friday, House Intelligence Committee member Jim Himes accused California Rep. Devin Nunes of persistently serving "the interests of Donald Trump" as chairman of the committee, which is probing alleged ties between Trump associates and Russia.

"Devin, as much as I appreciate him and consider him a friend, has demonstrated on multiple occasions that he often serves the interests of Donald Trump," the Connecticut Democrat told CNN's Alisyn Camerota on "New Day." "Once again, we were shown why this should be done by an outside commission."

Read the original here:
Lindsey Graham on health care: Republicans and Democrats need to work together - CNN

The President refuses to take any responsibility for the Republican failure to repeal and replace Obamacare.

President Donald Trump has found a target to blame for the failure of his first legislative initiative as president: Democrats.

The larger impact of the failed American Health Care Act has yet to be seen, but it has been generally agreed that it was not the best showing by a man who prides himself with being the closer of deals.

Related: GOP Leaders Delay Healthcare Vote Due to Lack of Support

His book, "The Art of the Deal", brags: Deals are my art form. Other people paint beautifully on canvas or write wonderful poetry. I like making deals, preferably big deals. Thats how I get my kicks.

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Related: Republicans Push Obamacare Repeal Forward As Industry Groups Voice Opposition

But according to Trump, there were no issues with his dealmaking. Democrats, he explained, were to blame because they refused to provide him with any of their votes.

We had no Democrat support. We had no votes from the Democrats, he said. With no Democrats on board, we couldnt quite get there.

House Speaker Paul Ryan yanked the bill Friday after his partys moderate and conservative lawmakers could not be persuaded to vote for its passing.

But Democrats had always been unified against it from the start. And Trump never once tried to use his persuasive deal-making skills on Democratic leaders. Many, even the more agreeable members of the party, confirmed they never received a call from the administration.

Trump later told reporters that he expected the opposition party to support any healthcare reform because the collapse of Obamacare would be on their heads.

The losers are Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer because now they own Obamacare, he said. This is not our bill. This is their bill.

See original here:
Trump Blames Democrats For Healthcare Fail - Essence.com

Vice President Pence tried Saturday to deliver a pep-talk to Americans after fellow Republicans failed effort to overhaul ObamaCare -- admitting that members are back to the drawing board but vowing that President Trump will keep fighting.

Pence spoke in the aftermath of House Speaker Paul Ryan on Friday cancelling the final vote for the ObamaCare replacement bill, upon concluding he didnt have enough votes despite the chambers GOP majority.

The Republican congressman and the president, after announcing the cancellation, sounded as if efforts to fulfill campaign promises to repeal and replace the 2010 health care law were essentially finished.

Ryan publicly said Americans would be living with ObamaCare for the foreseeable future, while Trump simply told The New York Times, Its enough already.

However, Trump and Pence on Saturday seemed to come back fighting.

ObamaCare will explode, and we will all get together and piece together a great healthcare plan for THE PEOPLE, Trump tweeted. Do not worry!

Pence later said at a business event in Charleston, West Virginia, that small-business owners in the state repeatedly tell him about the need to dismantle ObamaCare because it stifles growth and slows job creation.

President Trump is never going to stop fighting to keep his promises to the American people, he said

He also argued those who claimed victory in Republicans failure Friday are merely championing the status quo and said, I promise you, that victory wont last for long.

Pence also put pressure on West Virginia Sens. Shelley Moore Capito, a Republican, and Joe Manchin, a Democrat, to confirm Judge Neil Gorsuch as the next Supreme Court justice.

However, he also made clear that Gorsuch, Trumps pick, would be confirmed one way or another, implying that Senate Republican leaders would invoke parliamentary tactics to win confirmation with a simple, 51-vote majority.

Pence was joined at the first event by Small Business Administration leader Linda McMahon, who helped start and run World Wrestling Entertainment.

Maybe we could have used a couple of WWE superstars on Capitol Hill yesterday, Pence, who did his share of arm-twisting for ObamaCare reform, said jokingly.

On Friday, after the vote was cancelled, Trump appeared to already be focusing on tax reform and returning to his plan to allow ObamaCare to continue -- with the expectation that the 2010 health care law would implode amid increasing costs and dwindling options for Americans.

Still, his tweet Saturday suggested a potential willingness to work on a bipartisan plan on overhauling the law -- albeit a scenario in which Democrats come to the GOP-controlled Congress to work together on improvements.

Late Friday, Tennessee GOP Sen. Bob Corker also suggested the fight to replace ObamaCare was not finished.

At some point, on behalf of the American people, we have to resolve the issues that are driving up costs, limiting choices, and causing the individual market to spiral downward, he said. I stand ready to work with the administration and my colleagues on both sides of the aisle in order to fix our broken health care system.

Continue reading here:
Pence vows Trump will continue ObamaCare fight, calls out Democrats and Republicans - Fox News

"Probably that champagne that wasn't popped in November may be utilized this evening," he said. "We'll see."

He was right.

Moments later, House Speaker Paul Ryan announced that Republicans were nixing their high-stakes health care bill after failing to get enough support from within their own party. Obamacare would stay.

Democrats celebrated immediately, taking to social media and holding press conferences declaring a "sigh of relief" for the American public.

"In the words of my friend Joe Biden: This is a BFD," Democratic National Committee Chairman Tom Perez said in a statement.

"Today is a great day for our country," House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi told reporters. "It's a victory. What happened on the floor is a victory for the American people."

After President Donald Trump's upset win last year, Democrats were downright mournful. Not only did they lose the presidential election, but Republicans maintained control of both chambers in Congress and it was clear that the GOP's No. 1 target was going to be Obamacare.

Democrats say Republicans' inability to uphold their campaign promise should further embolden and amplify their party both in Congress and at the grassroots level.

Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-California, told CNN the bill's downfall was not only owed to Republican intra-party disagreement, but also to the liberal movement that's been pushing back against the new Republican government since Trump's first day.

Groups have actively been organizing phone and letter-writing campaigns to oppose the bill, and they've turned out in force at congressional town halls across the country.

"We showed (those constituents) there's going to be legislation coming through this House that we have to hold members accountable. This was, I think, the first real test of that," Swalwell said. "So yeah, we're fired up."

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Friday that the health care disaster sets a poor precedent for Republicans in the new Congress, adding that they're unlikely to have much luck with the president's budget plan -- something many Republicans have already criticized.

"So they have to re-examine how they are going to govern," Schumer said on a call with reporters. "They have to be much more capable and competent. I can't believe a bill like this was put on the floor with so little initial support."

Fresh off their victory in the House, Democrats are also entering what will likely be an ugly fight, this time in the Senate over Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch.

Democrats were already planning to filibuster, and Republicans can still get around that by lowering the threshold needed to end a filibuster from 60 votes to a simple majority. But that would require changing the rules, thus repeating an intense and unpopular move that Democrats pulled four years ago.

Whether the health care bill fiasco will have a real impact on the Gorsuch nomination is unclear, but it could give Democrats some momentum as they head into the week.

"Let's not forget, had Mitch McConnell not held up (Supreme Court nominee) Merrick Garland for a year, we wouldn't have been talking about this," Schumer said Friday night on CNN.

Schumer argued that if Gorsuch couldn't get to 60 votes, then Republicans shouldn't change the rules, they should "change the nominee."

In a sobering press conference, Speaker Paul Ryan acknowledged the Republican setback Friday.

"I will not sugarcoat this," he said. "This is a disappointing day for us. Doing big things is hard."

And it wasn't long before Republicans were fretting about next year's midterm elections.

"2018 will be tough," one senior GOP official told CNN.

Rep. Ben Ray Lujan, chairman of the House Democratic campaign arm, was already forecasting Friday which Republicans they could start targeting over the debacle. He told reporters there were 15 Republicans from competitive districts who voted to advance the bill in various committees during the legislative process.

"Their constituents deserve answers as to why they were voting yes on this bill which was horrible then, it was horrible today," he said. "And we'll continue to take this fight to the American people."

Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Massachusetts, told CNN now is a time for House Republicans "to reflect and be a little bit humble."

"If they want to do something constructive, they'll work with us to find ways to improve the Affordable Care Act," he said. "If they want to play politics and go down the same road again or drop their hands and do nothing, I think that's unfortunate because we have to wait for the Democrats to take over."

CNN's Manu Raju, Ted Barrett, Sunlen Sefarty, and David Siegel contributed to this story.

Read more:
Emboldened Democrats look ahead to next fight - CNN