McConnell: We’ve Made Important Progress Already, We Can Build On It Now
‘The president is ready to sign legislation. Congress will keep working hard to pass it. Because we know the American people deserve better than Obamacare. They deserve better than Obamacare and its skyrocketing costs. They deserve better than Obamacare and its plummeting choices. They deserve better than the job-killing regulations, crushing mandates, and collapsing markets Obamacare has given them.’
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) made the following remarks on the Senate floor today regarding the Senate Republican effort to repeal and replace Obamacare:
“Americans have been hurting under Obamacare. Senators took a big step toward moving beyond its failures with the motion to proceed vote earlier this week. It allowed the Senate to proceed with this important debate. It allowed the Senate to work through an open amendment process.
“Senators have considered proposals already, including some procedural motions from across the aisle. Senators will have the opportunity to consider many, many more amendments tonight. I know that colleagues in both parties are eager to do so. I encourage Senators with health-care ideas — whether Republicans, Democrats, or Independents — to bring their amendments to the floor.
“We’ve heard many different ideas on health care in recent months. Not every idea, of course, is a good one. One idea, from the Democratic Leader, is simply to throw money at insurance companies. No reforms. No changes. Just a multi-billion dollar Band-Aid.
“Another idea, from many other Democrats, is to quadruple down on Obamacare with a government-run ‘single payer’ system. It’s called ‘single payer’ because there is one payer, or insurer, the government. Nearly every health-care decision could be decided by a federal bureaucrat. Taxes could go up astronomically. The total cost could add up to $32 trillion, according to an estimate of a leading proposal. We’ll vote on ‘single payer’ this afternoon, and we’ll find out what support it enjoys in the Senate — especially among Democrats.
“We all know this is likely to be a long night. It’s part of a long process that has taken a lot of hard work from a lot of dedicated colleagues already. One phase of that process will end when the Senate concludes voting this week, but it will not signal the end of our work — not yet. Ultimately, the goal is to send legislation from Congress to the president — legislation that can finally move us beyond Obamacare’s years of failures.
“The president is ready to sign legislation. Congress will keep working hard to pass it. Because we know the American people deserve better than Obamacare. They deserve better than Obamacare and its skyrocketing costs. They deserve better than Obamacare and its plummeting choices. They deserve better than the job-killing regulations, crushing mandates, and collapsing markets Obamacare has given them.
“We all know this. We all know that the Obamacare status quo hasn’t been working for the people we represent. We’ve known it for years. Many of us committed to voting for a better way on health care. That’s what every Senator who supported the motion to proceed voted for on Tuesday.
“Let’s finish our work. Let’s not allow this opportunity to slip by. We’ve made important progress already. We can build on it now. The moment before us is one many of us have waited for and talked about for a long time. It’s a moment that can’t come soon enough for the people we represent. I urge everyone to keep working hard so we can get this over the finish line — it’s what our constituents, and our country, deserve.”
Related Issues: Obamacare, Health Care
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