Repeal Now, Replace Later?

Posted on July 18, 2017

Yesterday evening, two more Republican Senators– Mike Lee of Utah and Jerry Moran of Kansas– jointly announced their opposition to the Senate healthcare bill that was being push forward by the Republican leadership. Their statements increased the number of Senate Republicans opposing the bill to four, with Susan Collins of Maine and Rand Paul of Kentucky being the other two. With all Democrats opposed to the bill, the announcements from Lee and Moran have forced Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) to abandon his plans on the bill.

Last evening, Leader McConnell announced that, as a result, he will pursue a straight repeal of the Affordable Care Act (“Obamacare”) with the repeal kicking in after two years to allow, in theory, lawmakers and the White House to draft and implement a new plan to prevent individuals from losing coverage. It remains to be seen how much support such a strategy has.

Will a Massive 12-bill Spending Package Move?

Posted on July 17, 2017

The House Republican leadership this week is planning to check with their rank-and-file members on their level of receptivity to idea of moving a massive 12-bill omnibus appropriations package for the upcoming FY2018 before the August recess. The notion of combining all 12 annual spending measures for FY2018 and moving them together as a piece of legislation had been floated earlier this summer by a member of the Appropriations Committee and seems to have some support among the leadership. Members of the leadership team are expected to gauge the level of support for this idea within the rest of the Republican conference this week before deciding on whether to pursue this course of action.

Even if there is enough support for this strategy among the House Republicans, the funding levels called for in such a legislative package– which calls for spending levels above current law for defense and cuts for non-defense programs– will require cooperation from Democrats in order to become reality.

Senate Floor Action on Healthcare Bill Delayed

Posted on July 16, 2017

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) announced late Saturday that the Senate consideration of the revised healthcare legislation will be postponed. Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) had a blood clot removed on Friday and is not expected to return to the Senate the week of July 17. With two members who have already publicly declared their opposition to the measure, the Senate Republicans have no votes to spare. Floor consideration of the bill will be delayed until Sen. McCain returns to Washington.

Appropriations Process Trying to Move Forward?

Posted on July 14, 2017

The 12 individuals appropriations bills for FY2018 in the House have all now been cleared by their respective subcommittees and six have been approved by the full Appropriations Committee. Meanwhile, one bill has seen action on the other side of the Capitol.

While this may signal some movement on this front, the total amount of funding available for the bills still has not been agreed to and the amount proposed for the defense programs in the House exceed the level allowed by current law. This all likely means that there will need to be a bipartisan agreement on the overall spending level later this year. FY2018 starts on October 1.

Text of New Senate Healthcare Bill Released

Posted on July 13, 2017

As expected, the Senate Republicans released earlier today the text of the revised version of their healthcare legislation. The bill language is available here.

It is unclear at this point whether this version will generate enough support for passage. The previous version had to be pulled from consideration because of too much opposition from within the Republican conference.