Senate Conservatives Fund
A Victory Over The Establishment
Thursday, January 7, 2016Yesterday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill that repeals Obamacare and sent it to the president’s desk. The president will veto it, but it represents a major victory for conservatives who have tirelessly fought to stop a law that is unaffordable, unworkable, and unfair.
It’s also a significant victory over the Republican establishment, which has worked against the repeal movement every step of the way.
Last January, conservatives said the reconciliation process should be used to pass Obamacare repeal, but House and Senate GOP leaders resisted. First they said they wanted to use reconciliation for corporate tax and entitlement reform and when that didn’t sell they wanted to use it to pass partial repeal that would have left the bulk of Obamacare in place.
This Obamacare repeal bill is heading to the president’s desk because of grassroots pressure and the leadership of conservatives like Senators Mike Lee (R-UT) and Ted Cruz (R-TX) who stood up to their own leaders.
Senator Cruz initially called for the use of reconciliation to repeal Obamacare and Senator Lee threatened to sink the budget resolution unless it contained repeal instructions. Then, after the House passed a reconciliation bill that didn’t go far enough, Lee and Cruz withheld their support and forced Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) to change the bill.
Of course, the establishment and their allies in the media will now try to take credit for this victory, but informed conservatives know the truth. We know that they don’t really support repeal.
It’s why Senator McConnell defeated Senator Lee’s effort to add repeal to the must-pass highway bill, a smart strategy that would have put more pressure on the president to sign it. It’s also why top Republicans like Senator Lamar Alexander (R-TN) have said Republicans should make small “step-by-step” changes that have the support of Democrats.
Make no mistake, we conservatives must continue to pressure Republicans on this issue or they will surely betray us.
We have done so much to fight this law and keep the issue front and center, but still have much work to do. With your help, we can force Congress to use reconciliation to repeal Obamacare again next year and have it signed into law by a new, conservative president.
Thank you for staying engaged on this issue and for doing so much to advance health care freedom for all Americans. We’re grateful for your support.
Sincerely,
Ken Cuccinelli II
President
Senate Conservatives Fund
@KenCuccinelli / @SCF