The House Freedom Caucus maintains its members will vote against Speaker Paul Ryan’s American Health Care Act in today’s vote. Despite Ryan looking to delay the vote to work on getting more support, President Trump has demanded a vote today, and appears to be getting his way. Paul Ryan has set a vote for today’s session, and Trump is pressuring conservatives in the House to vote for the bill or face problems getting reelected in 2018.
Last night the chairman of the Freedom Caucus said progress was being made on the bill thanks to efforts by the White House.
This morning, the President castigated the Freedom Caucus for allowing continued funding for Planned Parenthood (which would be cut if the bill passes), putting the conservative members in the tough position of having to choose between voting to protect their fiscal values or their social values.
The irony is that the Freedom Caucus, which is very pro-life and against Planned Parenthood, allows P.P. to continue if they stop this plan!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 24, 2017
The Freedom Caucus has supported an alternative plan by Sen. Rand Paul that would expand HSAs, reform individual market healthcare pooling laws, allow for interstate competition among insurance companies, and make a number of other reforms conservatives have sought for some time.
The Trump administration last night was portraying the Ryan plan as the only way forward to repeal Obamacare. Today Americans will see if conservatives are willing to settle for a watered down Obamacare repeal, or would rather be stuck with Obamacare for longer.
