US President Barack Obama will make a
short but politically charged trip from the
White House to Capitol Hill Wednesday,
calling allied lawmakers to arms in defense
of his signature healthcare reforms.
Obama's eight-year drive to extend medical
coverage to tens of millions of Americans will
come under sustained assault when President-
elect Donald Trump takes office January 20 with
Republican majorities in both house of Congress.
In a preemptive strike, the outgoing president will
meet Senate and House Democrats, "principally
(to) discuss how to counter the stated
Republican objective of repealing the
Affordable Care Act, " said White House
spokesman Josh Earnest.
Obama's rare legislative pilgrimage coincides
with a dueling visit to the Congress by Vice
President-elect Mike Pence .
"We're focused on repealing and replacing
Obamacare," Pence said Tuesday. "We look
forward to legislation that will give us the
tools to roll back the avalanche of red tape
and regulation that have been stifling
American jobs."
After a crushing election loss, Democrats may
have limited options for stalling reforms without
significant Republican defections.
They also face criticism that Obama's reforms
have led to rising insurance premiums and a
string of technical problems.
Repeal and then what?
But while Republican opposition to Obamacare is
clear, their prescription to fix it is not.
House Speaker Paul Ryan has proposed a tax
credit system as a possible replacement, but the
costs to government and individuals remains
vague.
Some Republicans have suggested repealing
Obamacare now and replacing it later, perhaps
after the next election.
But the White House is betting that Americans
voters will react with fury if Trump moves to
strip millions of coverage with no viable
alternative.
They are hoping that public outcry could force
Trump to confront some of the more
ideologically driven reforms proposed by his own
party.
The president-elect is seen as highly sensitive
about his public standing.
He has been quick to tweet defensively about
perceived slights or reminders that despite his
electoral college victory in the November
elections, his rival Hillary Clinton still won the
popular vote by almost three million ballots.
Trump comes to office with 48 percent of
Americans polled by Gallup believing he is
handling the transition effectively.
That is far less than the 75 percent approval
Obama enjoyed at the same point or George W.
Bush's 65 percent.
Republican legislators are eager to take charge
after eight years spent fighting against Obama's
policies.
But some are wary that white working class
Americans, who delivered them to office, may
bear the brunt of any reforms.
Gutting Obamacare could also have knock-on
effects for funding healthcare for retirees, a group
essential to the Republican Party's survival.
In these two issues, Democrats see pressure
points they hope to exploit in defense of
Obama's plan.
"It's not surprising to me that there are some
Republicans who are now a little queasy
about the prospect of the impact that
repealing Obamacare would have on their
own supporters, " said Earnest.
"We know there are people all across the
country who benefit from this law, who are
protected by this law, whose lives have been
saved by this law."
Obama is believed to have put this point directly
to Trump when they talked soon after the
election.
Privately many Democrats admit their best hope
now could be offering Trump some form of
political victory, so long as the plan survives
more or less intact.
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