“I feel very good about it actually,” said Speaker of the House Paul Ryan on Sunday as he spoke with Chris Wallace about the upcoming vote on the American Health Care Act. “I feel like it’s exactly where we want to be.”
There is some doubt about that among other lawmakers, to say nothing of the pundits and talk shows on cable news and online. The AHCA has left many on the right feeling as if all the work towards repeal in the last few years among the activists has been wasted by the politicians when the moment came. But Ryan thinks they’ll get it through the House, and President Trump is part of the reason.
“The reason I feel so good about this is because the president has become a great closer. He’s the one who has helped negotiate changes to this bill with members from all over our caucus.”
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“We’re going to make good on that promise” to repeal and replace, says Ryan. Hmm.
It should be noted that confidence of the AHCA passing the House is not the same as confidence it will make it through the Senate. Nor is it really any guarantee that the bill will be good, helpful, or meaningfully different from Obamacare.
But he’s confident President Trump can sell it to the House. Okay, then.