GOP Sen.: It’s Not Important For Trump To Know ‘Intricacies’ Of O’Care Repeal

Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., speaks to reporters outside the Senate Chamber about President Trump's speech to Congress, during the vote to confirm Ryan Zinke as President Donald Trump’s secretary of the Department of the Interior, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, March 1, 2017. A physician by training, Cassidy has introduced an Affordable Care Act alternative, called the Patient Freedom Act of 2017.  (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La. speaks to reporters outside the Senate Chamber on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, March 1, 2017, about President Trump's speech to Congress, during the Senate vote to confirm Interior ... Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La. speaks to reporters outside the Senate Chamber on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, March 1, 2017, about President Trump's speech to Congress, during the Senate vote to confirm Interior Secretary-designate Ryan Zinke. A physician by training, Cassidy has introduced an Affordable Care Act alternative, called the Patient Freedom Act of 2017. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) MORE LESS
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Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) said Thursday that it wasn’t important for President Donald Trump to know the “policy intricacies” of the Republican bill to repeal Obamacare.

In an interview with Cassidy, MSNBC’s Hallie Jackson asked the senator about Trump’s bizarre comment to the New York Times — perhaps meant to illustrate that health care costs rise with age, or maybe to explain a savings account for lifelong health spending — that when “you’re 21 years old, you start working and you’re paying $12 a year for insurance, and by the time you’re 70, you get a nice plan.”

The President has never discussed the specifics of congressional Republicans’ multiple attempts to repeal and replace Obamacare, and make deep cuts to Medicaid.

“In your conversations with him, do you think the President understands the political, the policy intricacies of this bill?” Jackson asked.

“I don’t think it’s important for him to understand the policy intricacies of this bill,” Cassidy replied. “What’s important for him is to understand the principle — his principle is that there should be a replace associated with repeal. And during the campaign he consistently said he wanted to continue coverage for those who had, cover preexisting conditions, eliminate mandates and lower premiums, those are very good principles by which to go.”

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Notable Replies

  1. Avatar for zsak zsak says:

    Yet Trump claims he wowed them with his depth of knowledge

  2. So Trump will veto any Republican bills because the goals of those bills are to eliminate mandates, but not to cover preexisting conditions and lower premiums. Right?

    You know those are competing goals impossible to reach.

  3. Well, you have to admit, they didn’t even try the “clueless is okay by us” strategy with Dubya.

  4. Avatar for nova nova says:

    he’s sure come a long way from that 10 minutes where he got choked up by a viral kimmel video.

  5. This isn’t “intricacies”. Trump betrays a gross, and profound ignorance of basic shit regarding the topic.

    And your trying to defend him and it are pathetic you piece of shit.

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