House Speaker Paul Ryan on Thursday rejected the idea that centrist Republicans could put their jobs at risk if they support the American Health Care Act.
“No,” Ryan said when asked if centrist members might lose their next election. “I think people’s seats are at risk if we don’t do what we said we would do.”
“We all campaigned on repealing and replacing this law that is collapsing. The American healthcare system in the individual market is in peril right now. We have a moral obligation to prevent people from getting hurt, to stop damage from being continued, and we promised that we would do this. If you violate promise, if you commit the sin of hypocrisy in politics, that’s the greater risk, I think, to a person’s seat.”
Ryan’s comments came mere minutes after House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi pressed that Republicans who support the bill will have “doo-doo on their shoes for a long time” and has said that members will have the vote “tattooed” on their foreheads.
The AHCA received a big boost on Thursday after the House Freedom Caucus announced that they will support the measure. However, it is unknown how many centrist Republicans will support the bill despite the involvement of Rep. Tom MacArthur, R-N.J., a top member of the Tuesday Group, who co-authored the latest amendment with Freedom Caucus Chairman Mark Meadows, R-N.C.
A date has not been set on a vote for the AHCA.
