#trumpcare (4. #DimensionTrump)

#DimensionTrump | #WhatTheyVotedFor

Who:	Steve Benen (msnbc)
What:	“The Republican ‘Obamacare’ repeal crusade starts to unravel”
When:	10 January 2017

Via msnbc:

Two months ago, when Republicans enjoyed a successful Election Day, one thing seemed obvious: GOP officials would use their dominant position to repeal the Affordable Care Act the moment they had the chance. It would be the first order of business in 2017, Republican leaders vowed.

There was every reason to believe the GOP would keep this promise―that is, until very recently.

The great temptation is doubt. Which, in turn, feels familiar. For his part, Benen puts his count at ten in the United States Senate^α “not sold on ‘repeal and delay'”, as well as objections from the House Freedom Caucus.

On that latter, Politico caught up with Congressman Mark Meadows (R-NC11) at Tortilla Coast^β, where the HFC Chairman explained, “We need to slow down the process so we can understand a little bit more the specifics and the timetable of replacement votes and reconciliation instructions.” Regarding the upcoming budget resolution vote, he added that, “Without specificity”, the caucus, “would be inclined to encourage a delay.”

Certes, it feels tedious, but there might well be a moral to the story about attending the details.

Or not. This is, after all, #DimensionTrump. That is to say, the fact of Donald Trump’s election seems significant in some context related to how we formulate our expectations for the behavior of Beltway Republicans.

The president elect is not yet the president; one wonders if Congressional Republicans will smash themselves against the rocks even before Mr. Trump takes office. It will be a lot easier to predict dereliction if, out of all that, the wreck of the GOP can’t find three votes to make the point about “repeal and delay”.

Then again, they make enough of a point if they don’t, and something about how government just doesn’t work goes here.

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^α Sens. Lamar Alexander (TN), Bill Cassidy (LA), Susan Collins (ME), Bob Corker (TN), Tom Cotton (AR), Ron Johnson (WI), John McCain (AZ), Lisa Murkowski (AK), Rand Paul (KY), Rob Portman (OH). See also, the joint statement released by Cassidy, Collins, Corker, Murkowski, and Portman regarding an amendment to the budget resolution mentioned in passing as Benen tallied up his numbers.

^β Never pass on a Tortilla Coast sighting; it’s where Sen. Cruz (R-TX) plots his overthrow of the House of Representatives.

Bade, Rachael. “Freedom Caucus looks to delay budget―and Obamacare repeal”. Politico. 9 January 2017.

Benen, Steve. “The Republican ‘Obamacare’ repeal crusade starts to unravel”. msnbc. 10 January 2017.

Office of U.S. Sen. Bob Corker. “Senators Introduce Amendment to Improve Process for Repealing and Replacing Health Care Law in Timely Fashion”. 9 January 2017.