Here we are at long last with a Republican majority in the House and Senate and a Republican president, just about all of whom seem to have forgotten why voters sent them to Washington, D.C.
Despite holding a clear majority, senators can’t agree on moving forward with an amended version of the BCRA or repealing Obamacare and building a new health care plan from scratch — either path forward lacks the votes needed to proceed.
We’re pretty much always happy to hear from Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.), who laid out in a series of 20 tweets Tuesday afternoon why he remains committed to repealing Obamacare. He admits that replacing an entitlement is tough work that’s bound to be unpopular with many, but then again, he seems to have a clear memory of why voters sent him to D.C.
We’re not sure whom Scott had in mind when he got to the part about the fight becoming personal, but we’d be thrilled to stop hearing the clowns on the sidelines crowing about how the repeal effort is nothing more than an attempt to undo “the Obama legacy” — a legacy built on PolitiFact’s Lie of the Year for 2013.
1.When I was elected to Congress in 2010–along w/a record-breaking Freshman class,the major platform was repealing the ACA&the national debt
— Tim Scott (@SenatorTimScott) July 18, 2017
2. The debt continues to grow, and the ACA is not getting any better. The former isn’t helped by the latter.
— Tim Scott (@SenatorTimScott) July 18, 2017
3. In South Carolina, we’re down to one insurer offering plans on the exchanges.We’re seeing triple digit premium hikes,sky high deductibles
— Tim Scott (@SenatorTimScott) July 18, 2017
4. Millions are paying for insurance they don’t want. In SC, more than 100,000 stuck without an option
— Tim Scott (@SenatorTimScott) July 18, 2017
5. Not everyone got to keep their doctors, and they weren’t able to keep their plans
— Tim Scott (@SenatorTimScott) July 18, 2017
6. These are facts – you can’t argue with them. And that’s not how our health care system should work
— Tim Scott (@SenatorTimScott) July 18, 2017
7. Two things happened along the way to where we stand today
— Tim Scott (@SenatorTimScott) July 18, 2017
8. The ACA went into effect, and – “A government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we’ll ever see on this earth” (Reagan)
— Tim Scott (@SenatorTimScott) July 18, 2017
9. No matter how badly the program serves (or doesn’t serve) the people – replacing an entitlement is hard
— Tim Scott (@SenatorTimScott) July 18, 2017
10. And two – along the way we stopped fighting the policy, and started fighting the people behind it
— Tim Scott (@SenatorTimScott) July 18, 2017
11. We’ve got to realize that our pattern should not be disagree and destroy, but rather disagree and solve
— Tim Scott (@SenatorTimScott) July 18, 2017
12. So that’s where we stand today. A bad program that has grown deep roots, and a bitterly divided political culture.
— Tim Scott (@SenatorTimScott) July 18, 2017
13. I remain committed to repealing the ACA and replacing it with a system that works for all families
— Tim Scott (@SenatorTimScott) July 18, 2017
14. The ACA is not sustainable, and hasn’t been from the beginning. Its foundation was built on certain groups that never signed up
— Tim Scott (@SenatorTimScott) July 18, 2017
15. Its price tag grew and grew from the billions into the trillions, and finally scoring agencies just gave up
— Tim Scott (@SenatorTimScott) July 18, 2017
16. You can’t just put your head in the sand and ignore those facts and hope that it lives forever
— Tim Scott (@SenatorTimScott) July 18, 2017
17. But here’s what I’m not doing – I’m not going to impugn the intentions of people who disagree
— Tim Scott (@SenatorTimScott) July 18, 2017
18. I truly believe we all want what’s best for our nation and her people. To me, that’s finding a better solution than the ACA provides.
— Tim Scott (@SenatorTimScott) July 18, 2017
19. I’m not going to give up on repealing the Unaffordable Care Act. American families deserve better.
— Tim Scott (@SenatorTimScott) July 18, 2017
20. I’m also not going to stop looking for a solution – giving up isn’t what we were sent here to do.
— Tim Scott (@SenatorTimScott) July 18, 2017
Admittedly, Scott’s tweet-storm isn’t a plan, but it’s a very clearly laid-out model of just what senators are looking at right now. And he nails it when he observes that Obamacare’s foundation “was built on certain groups that never signed up.”
Responses to Scott ran the gamut, from implementing single payer to fixing what’s broken with Obamacare to, well, full repeal.
https://twitter.com/The13th_Ghost/status/887388747075014656
Just do it!
— stew lo (@Stew_Lo) July 18, 2017
Just do it! Take a risk! People will be glad free market is in charge again! Just Repeal! #FullRepeal!
— Diane Boyd (@Boyd_2650) July 18, 2017
Exactly. Now, change that mindset of Congress, one member at a time, and lead us. That is what we, the people, expect, deserve & need.Do it.
— Sand (@Lousandfair) July 18, 2017
The Democrats passed it without a single Republican vote, why can't Republicans keep their word and Repeal it?
— Mike Madden (@RealWavmaster) July 18, 2017
Let's see some action. Call for a clean repeal vote. I want GOP on record so we know who has been lying to us about repeal.
— Gary Giessmann (@Rhetticent) July 18, 2017
I was with you until "replace", how about we just repeal? Govt run option is doomed to fail, show me govt run that isn't in the red.
— Shawn TH Livengood (@ThLivengood) July 18, 2017
I am disgusted with the republicans . Just repeal it
— demsarestunods (@demsarestunods) July 18, 2017
You should fight like hell to get everyone on board. This is embarrassing
— BranJohn (@bran5280) July 18, 2017
https://twitter.com/brad7743me/status/887388539381481474
Basically, just keep your promises and REPEAL IT! Nobody likes liars and not keeping a promise is a lie. #FullRepeal
— Mike Madden (@RealWavmaster) July 18, 2017
https://twitter.com/oranger9857/status/887389660456001536
How about letting the free market take over???? #RepealObamacare
— Jerry Van Horn (@azwackobird) July 18, 2017
That’s crazy … it sounds like something the Republicans would do if they ever found themselves in charge.
Sen. Scott, we do not want the government involved in healthcare. Or insurance for that matter. Please work to repeal it.
— Eddie Roberts (@Eddie__Roberts) July 18, 2017
https://twitter.com/EscapeVelo/status/887389117608275968
please stop looking for a solution and just repeal it. that's why you were elected.
— Ouagadougou (@shuggabumfairy) July 18, 2017
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Related:
And there it is — GOP plan to repeal Obamacare and replace later just died in the Senate, too https://t.co/LzH7GnHFJa
— Twitchy Team (@TwitchyTeam) July 18, 2017
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