In joint statement, conservative senators echo initial Freedom … – Washington Examiner

After a draft of Senate leadership's healthcare bill to repeal and replace Obamacare was revealed on Thursday, several key conservative senators announced their opposition to the bill.

In a joint statement, Sens. Rand Paul, R-Ky., Mike Lee, R-Utah, Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Ron Johnson, R-Wis., announced, "we are not ready to vote for this bill, but we are open to negotiation and obtaining more information before it is brought to the floor."

In explaining their opposition to the legislation, the senators pointed to the same reason members of the House Freedom Caucus opposed an early draft of the American Health Care Act. "It does not appear this draft as written will accomplish the most important promise that we made to Americans," the senators said on Thursday, "to repeal Obamacare and lower their healthcare costs."

In an interview with the Washington Examiner as negotiations over AHCA were ongoing, House Freedom Caucus Chairman Mark Meadows said the group's only goal was "to lower premiums."

"The biggest thing for all of us," Meadows remarked in March, "is we want to make sure we don't just have repeal, but we have a replacement that drives down insurance premiums."

Centrist Republicans attempted to cast the Freedom Caucus as obstructionists during the spring negotiations, though a compromise was eventually struck that earned enough support from both ends of the Republican spectrum to pass a bill in the House.

"The only thing we will be judged by is 'do premiums come down?'" Meadows told the Washington Examiner in March.

"When John Smith the manufacturing worker opens that insurance premium," the North Carolina Republican said, his family will only care if costs went down. If not, they will conclude, "That Republican plan didn't work.'" Meadows predicted. "They will make a judgment call and the plan that's on the table right now won't do that."

That Paul, Lee, Cruz, and Johnson are echoing this criticism could portend negotiations will play out similarly to those over AHCA, with centrists crying obstruction and conservatives pushing back hard to come to a compromise that will lower costs, before the bill is brought to the floor for a vote. Former chairman of the centrist House Republican Tuesday Group Rep. Tom MacArthur, R-N.J., resigned in May over disagreements with members who were upset with his willingness to negotiate with the Freedom Caucus.

Senate Republicans can't afford to lose many votes and will need to produce a bill that brings together centrists and conservatives.

The joint statement issued Thursday noted the senators are "open to negotiation" going forward.

Emily Jashinskyis a commentary writer for the Washington Examiner.

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In joint statement, conservative senators echo initial Freedom ... - Washington Examiner