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Senate Judicary Committee members partake in a hearing on Russian interference on May 8th.

By Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images.

After finally passing a health-care bill and handing it off to the Senate, Republican lawmakers have lapsed into a disconcerting silence. While political divisions remain between moderate and conservative senators, negotiations are reportedly accelerating behind closed doors as the G.O.P. inches closer to fulfilling a nearly decade-long dream: repealing Obamacare, lowering taxes, cutting government subsidies, and shrinking Medicaid. Of course, theres been little reporting on their progress, primarily because Senate Republicanshaving learned their lessons from the very public failures of their House colleaguesarent speaking to the media. There are no plans for public hearings on the legislation, which is overwhelmingly unpopular. And, according to two senior G.O.P. senate aides who spoke to Axios, there are no plans to release the draft text.

We arent stupid, one Senate aide told Caitlin Owens, who reports that the negotiations could be wrapped as early as this week. Unlike Democrats, who held 36 days of hearings on Obamacare, Republicans would reportedly send their legislation straight to the Congressional Budget Office to be scored. We are still in discussions about what will be in the final product so it is premature to release any draft absent further member conversations and consensus.

The same Senate Republicans who criticized Democrats for ramming through Obamacarewhich the full Senate debated for 25 straight days in 2009 before passing itare now hoping to vote on the American Health Care Act by the beginning of their summer recess on July 4. More than 20 million people are expected to lose or drop their insurance as a result of the legislation, which has not yet been shared with the public.

Senate Republicans may have learned a painful lesson from their House colleagues, who rapidly lost public support for their bill after the C.B.O. concluded that it would leave millions of people without insurance or access to essential health benefits. Democrats, however, are furious that the G.O.P. bill will not be exposed to public scrutiny until the last moment. We have no idea whats being proposed, Missouri Senator Claire McCaskill said in a recent hearing. Theres a group of guys in a back room somewhere that are making these decisions. Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders tweeted a photo of a blank piece of paper with the caption, BREAKING: Senate Republicans just released the schedule of hearings, committee markups and public testimony for their health care bill.

Even Republican senators who were not privy to the drafting process are concerned they are being kept in the dark. I want to know exactly whats in the Senate bill. I dont know yet, Wisconsin Senator Ron Johnson told Bloombergs Sahil Kapur. Its not a good process. South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham acknowledged that this is not the best way to do health care, but said itt the way were having to do it.

The rest is here:
We Aren't Stupid: Why Republicans Are Keeping Their Health-Care Bill Secret - Vanity Fair