Republicans in the House had between 205 and 210 votes in favor of the failed Obamacare replacement bill last week, White House press secretary Sean Spicer predicted on Monday.
“We have — let’s call it 205, 207, somewhere in there — votes. Maybe 210, depending on what it is,” Spicer said of the bill, which House leadership pulled from a scheduled floor vote last week when the legislation fell short of the GOP votes needed to advance to the Senate.
“To get to 216, to get to 218 … there are certain things that people want … that weren’t worth doing because it would make the deal bad,” Spicer said.
President Trump, Vice President Mike Pence and senior administration officials negotiated directly over the past several weeks with House conservatives and moderates who had concerns about the healthcare legislation. While Republicans discussed a number of changes to the bill, none were sufficient to unify the GOP behind the legislation.
Spicer said Monday that the White House is still engaging in discussions about how to proceed after the American Health Care Act fell apart on Friday.
“Staff has met with individuals and listened to them,” Spicer said. “Have we had some discussions and listened to ideas? Yes. Are we actively planning an immediate strategy? No.”
Spicer indicated the administration has not completely abandoned its hopes for an Obamacare overhaul.
“If we can find a way forward, we’ll do it,” he said.
