Sen. Cotton: GOP Can’t Kick The Can By Repealing O’Care Without Replacement

U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., speaks in front of the Arkansas state Capitol in Little Rock, Ark., Tuesday, May 26, 2015. (AP Photo/Danny Johnston)
Start your day with TPM.
Sign up for the Morning Memo newsletter

Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) said Thursday that it would be a mistake for congressional Republicans to repeal Obamacare without a replacement plan in place.

“I think when we repeal Obamacare we need to have the solution in place moving forward,” he said on MSNBC’s “Meet The Press.” “Again, the solution may be implemented in a deliberate fashion but I don’t think we can repeal Obamacare and say we’ll get the answer two years from now.”

A growing number of Republican lawmakers are voicing concerns with their party’s plan to immediately move to repeal some aspects of the healthcare law while leaving others in place until 2019. The GOP has yet to put forth a comprehensive replacement plan for Obamacare, though they have campaigned against the legislation since it passed in 2010.

Asked by MSNBC host Chuck Todd if he would vote for replacement without “something concrete in place that people can see,” Cotton said repeal and replacement must go hand in hand, even if some aspects of the Republican plan wouldn’t go into effect until years down the line.

“Health care is a very complex issue,” the Arkansas Republican said. “We haven’t coalesced around a solution in six years in part because it is so complicated. Kicking the can down the road for a year or two years is not going to make it any easier to solve.”

Latest Livewire
55
Show Comments

Notable Replies

  1. I call bullshit:

    Cotton said repeal and replacement must go hand in hand, even if some aspects of the Republican plan wouldn’t go into effect until years down the line.

    If that’s not kicking the can down the road, I don’t know what is.

  2. Shorter Idiot: When time comes to vote, I will repeal without any replacement. I don’t want any replacement, I want people to suffer, especially the poor, who I am sure are not white.

  3. Worldclassassholesayswhat?

  4. Looks like the GOP senate won’t go along with the house.

    Cotton is a reactionary scum, after all.

Continue the discussion at forums.talkingpointsmemo.com

49 more replies

Participants

Avatar for system1 Avatar for austin_dave Avatar for ajaykalra Avatar for overreach_this Avatar for littlegirlblue Avatar for docrock Avatar for blandsten Avatar for maksutov66 Avatar for irasdad Avatar for alansnipes734 Avatar for ralph_vonholst Avatar for tomanjeri Avatar for borisjimbo Avatar for stradivarius50t3 Avatar for rapier Avatar for shorebreeze Avatar for jacksonhts Avatar for machoneman Avatar for canyoncountry Avatar for walterwiggum Avatar for coprophagoussmile Avatar for drtv Avatar for the_loan_arranger Avatar for tonydanzig

Continue Discussion
Masthead Masthead
Founder & Editor-in-Chief:
Executive Editor:
Managing Editor:
Deputy Editor:
Editor at Large:
General Counsel:
Publisher:
Head of Product:
Director of Technology:
Associate Publisher:
Front End Developer:
Senior Designer: