House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy said GOP lawmakers would begin moving immediately on a Republican agenda when the 115th Congress convenes in early January, getting a weeks-long head start on President-elect Trump, who will be sworn in on Jan. 20.
“We are not going to wait until the 20th,” the California Republican, told reporters in his Capitol Hill office. “You’ll see us start working from the very first.”
Congress reconvenes the first business day after New Years and normally adjourns until inauguration, but McCarthy said he is re-evaluating the calendar and may add work days, “based on what I want to see prior to the inauguration.”
On the top of the list is repealing and replacing the healthcare law known as Obamacare. McCarthy said it was even possible Congress could attempt to repeal the law this year through a legislative process known as reconciliation and then carry it over to the new year, which is allowed in some cases.
McCarthy said no decision have been made, but repealing and replacing the law will happen quickly. Obamacare premiums are rising dramatically, insurance companies are dropping out and people are left with unaffordable coverage, McCarthy’s aid.
“We have a lot of different things to do but this is a top priority,” McCarthy said.
The House, he added, has prepared the groundwork for legislation through its “Better Way” agenda, which replaces the law, McCarthy said, “with more choice, lower cost and more options.”
