Republican Ohio Gov. John Kasich on Friday night said that he has concerns about the House bill to repeal and replace Obamacare and warned that if Republicans rush a bill through Congress without input from Democrats, the legislation will be doomed.
“So, what I’m fearful of, if Republicans jam this through without working with Democrats and reaching some sort of real good compromise, we will be right back where we were in five or six years before we started with Obamacare,” Kasich told CNN’s Anderson Cooper. “That’s not acceptable.”
He said that he does not believe the bill will pass in the Senate in its current form and called on Senate leadership to work on a compromise with Democrats.
“I that think the situation is, the road map is, maybe it will pass the House, maybe it won’t. But when it gets to the Senate, we have to involve both parties in the discussion because, Anderson, look, if you don’t have both parties working on a major issue, it’s not sustainable,” he said.
Kasich said that if the bill passes with only Republican support, it will become a “political issue” during the next campaign cycle. He said that when Democrats eventually make gains, they will simply reverse Republicans’ work.
The Ohio governor and former Republican presidential candidate, said that he is worried about the GOP yanking Medicaid expansion. He said that it’s fine if Republicans phase out Medicaid, but he warned against abruptly taking away coverage.
“You don’t want to just kick them off because then where do they go?” Kasich said.
He then argued that the tax credits offered in the Republican bill are not enough to help Americans afford health insurance. He said that with the low tax credits, “you’re going to have a catastrophic policy with a deductible that you can never pay.”
Well… all other bullshit things in John’s comment aside …
We haven’t had a Kasich tweet in some time …so there’s that –
I have yet to hear a coherent argument from Republicans on how many they expect poor people and those just above the poverty line to afford healthcare, mainly because they don’t have an argument. As such, it really reveals the depth of their dislike and disrespect for most humans.
In other words, just another Screw-The-Poors wolf in “moderate Republican” clothing.
Recalling the debates, a lot of democrats (myself included) were worried about Kasich because he sounded reasonable and we were afraid of his extreme pro-life stance – and that he might actually win against HRC. Seems like a lifetime ago. I’d take Kasich in a heartbeat now. I guess I am in the third phase of the Kubler-Ross stages of grief – bargaining.
“Don’t take my Medicaid $$$, tarnsarnit!”