Chuck Todd Presses GOPer To Defend Secretive ACA Repeal Drafting Process

UNITED STATES - APRIL 4: Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., speaks as Senate Republican leaders hold their media availability focusing on the confirmation of Neil Gorsuch as associate justice of the Supreme Court following ... UNITED STATES - APRIL 4: Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., speaks as Senate Republican leaders hold their media availability focusing on the confirmation of Neil Gorsuch as associate justice of the Supreme Court following their policy lunch on Tuesday, April 4, 2017. (Photo By Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call) (CQ Roll Call via AP Images) MORE LESS

In a tense exchange on Wednesday, MSNBC’s Chuck Todd pressed a Republican senator to say whether he’s comfortable defending the secretive approach he and his colleagues have taken to drafting their bill to repeal and replace Obamacare.

Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY) got testy when Todd asked him to defend Senate Republicans’ closed-door approach to working on the health care legislation.

“There’s going to be a big markup on this, the whole process of the vote-a-rama,” Barrasso said on “MTP Daily,” referring to a rapid-fire series of votes on potential amendments to the legislation.

“After the bill passes?” Todd interrupted.

“No, before! No, on the floor of the Senate,” Barrasso shot back. “There may be 50 to 100 amendments offered. This is a wide-open amendment process before we vote yes or no on the entire bill.”

“Are you really comfortable defending this process, Senator?” Todd pressed. “The vote-a-rama you’re talking about, it’s possible all those amendments all get replaced when you just vote on the last bill at the end.”

“Well, there’s going to be votes,” Barrasso replied. “People are going to be able to watch it on C-SPAN, every member’s going to be allowed to offer amendments.”

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  1. Vote-a-rama?

    Seriously, are you 12?

  2. This is probably the biggest consequence of the Dump-led war on the press - even UpChuck Todd is showing spine.

  3. Another Republican unable to defend the indefensible. Next up, hooded tribunals and black Suburbans…

  4. Avatar for ollie ollie says:

    Draining the swamp means hiding in smoke filled rooms?

  5. In June and July 2009, with Democrats in charge, the Senate health committee spent nearly 60 hours over 13 days marking up the bill that became the Affordable Care Act. That September and October, the Senate Finance Committee worked on the legislation for eight days — its longest markup in two decades. It considered more than 130 amendments and held 79 roll-call votes. The full Senate debated the health care bill for 25 straight days before passing it on Dec. 24, 2009. [1]

    Sen. McConnell says there will be “ample time” to debate and pass the AHCA.

    25 straight days?

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