This Is What Happens When Republicans Govern

By: Tony Rivera

What a colossal mess.

LAST WEEK:
Q: Hey Mr. Ryan, do you have the votes today to pass your Repeal Bill?
“We will have 218 (votes) when this thing comes to the floor, I can guarantee you that.”

THIS WEEK:
Q: Hey Mr. Ryan, do you have the votes today to pass your Repeal Bill?
“It’s not coming up this afternoon…That’s, no offense, kind of a goofy question.”

A FEW HOURS LATER:
Washington Post:  Ryan: Health Care Plan Must Change To Pass The House

NOW, It looks like Speaker Paul Ryan has some big decisions to make. For seven years Republicans voted dozens of times to pull the plug on the ACA, but never offered a serious alternative. Apparently not once during that time did they stop and consider the practical differences between grandstanding and governing.

Now, despite their unrealistic promises, Speaker Paul Ryan and House Republicans are roughly two weeks into a bill that has insulted everyone and won’t survive in its current form. Just yesterday, the House Budget Committee barely passed the ACHA, 19-17, over major objections from the party’s right-wing extremists.

Instead of a unified Republican government, Paul Ryan has his arms wrapped in a political mess:

–First, there was the Congressional Budget Office’s Report on Monday:

• AP: Report: Millions could lose health insurance
• Washington Post: The CBO just dealt a huge blow to Republicans’ Obamacare replacement
• The Hill: GOP does damage control over healthcare score

–Then the White House, never to be one-upped, corrected the record Monday night:

• Politico: White House analysis of Obamacare repeal sees even deeper insurance losses than CBO

–By Tuesday, vulnerable Republicans—all of whom have voted for repeal in the past—suddenly realized this was for keepsies:

• CNN: Hill moderates take issue with GOP health care plan
• Roll Call: GOP Outside Group Pressures Vulnerable Members on Health Care Plan

–On Wednesday, the public polling started coming in:

• LA Times: Americans are skeptical about the Republican plan to replace Obamacare, new poll shows
• Public Policy Polling: 24% of Voters Support GOP Health Care Plan
• The Hill: Poll: Voters prefer ObamaCare to GOP plan

–And of course, by Thursday, right wing extremists of the Republican Party began taking over:

• Business Insider: Conservatives just dealt ‘Trumpcare’ a significant blow
• HuffPo: Conservatives Demand Changes On Health Care Bill As GOP Leaders Sound Shaky
• Washington Post: White House tries to salvage GOP health-care proposal as criticism mounts
• Politico: Conservatives escalate threats to tank Obamacare repeal

Now, Speaker Ryan and Republicans are faced with a choice between their ideology and constituency.  Somewhere out there, John Boehner must be looking at all this and be thinking to himself  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯.