PUSHBACK

Four GOP Senators Announce Opposition to Health-Care Bill

It “doesn’t go far enough” for Rand Paul, Ted Cruz, Mike Lee, and Ron Johnson.

Four Republican senators announced their opposition Thursday to the Senate’s version of the Obamacare repeal legislation. Sens. Rand Paul, Ted Cruz, Mike Lee, and Ron Johnson issued a joint statement saying the bill doesn’t go far enough to repeal the Affordable Care Act, but they are open to negotiations. “There are provisions in this draft that represent an improvement to our current health-care system, but it does not appear this draft as written will accomplish the most important promise that we made to Americans: to repeal Obamacare and lower their health-care costs,” the joint statement reads. In his own statement, Paul—who has been openly critical of the back-door process by which the legislation was written—said in its current form the bill “does not repeal Obamacare.” With a slim majority of 52 senators in the upper chamber, Republicans can only afford to lose two GOP votes on the bill. No Democrats are expected to vote for it.