We waited a long time for this – no less than 2,500 days, to be exact. But who’s counting? It was the passing and signing of Obamacare in 2010 that moved the grassroots to action and landed the Republicans a majority in the House, the largest majority they’d seen since 1928.
The victory in 2010 was great, but it was only the beginning. We were told we had to wait until Republicans controlled the Senate and White House before a full repeal and replace of Obamacare was possible.
Then 2016 happened. The mantra of “Repeal and Replace” would be easy to implement, right? Not so fast.
Even with full control, the unraveling of Obamacare hasn’t been easy. Whether you want to call it the American Health Care Act, Trumpcare, Ryancare, Patientcare, Obamacare Lite, or “a big, fat, beautiful negotiation,” here are the five #SMH photos that prove lawmaking is a messy and complicated business.
No Trespassing
There was a lot of speculation about when this bill would surface given Republican control of all of Washington, but we finally got word on March 3 that its debut was imminent.
Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., (a doctor elected in the anti-Obamacare wave of 2010) decided to go search for the eagerly awaited bill. But he didn’t have much luck, as rank-and-file legislators were left out of the legislating process.
We are continuing our search for the Obamacare Lite bill! Do you know where the secret location might be? Has anyone seen the bill? pic.twitter.com/WcSIDTs0vP
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) March 3, 2017
This didn’t stop him from finding a way to get it. When he found the door to the secret room where the bill was being held (and guarded by body men), he was kicked out.
Ted Talk Lite
The bill was finally introduced, and on March 9, we watched Speaker of the House Paul Ryan transform into Professor Ryan to inform and persuade. Because nothing screams you’re hip and up-to-date with America’s problems like rolling up your sleeves and using PowerPoint.
“It really comes down to a binary choice…” to use PowerPoint or not.
— Michael Schwab (@michaelschwab13) March 14, 2017
The Late Late Late Show
House Republican leadership immediately jumped into action to push the bill through before recess and promptly scheduled all-night markups in the Energy & Commerce and Ways & Means Committees.
Some people took it well…like Energy & Commerce Chairman Greg Walden, R-Ore., who clearly didn’t let more than 24 straight hours of markup hold him down.
Energy & Commerce Chair @repgregwalden discussing gov’t bureaucracy in hour 19 of #AHCA markup. pic.twitter.com/5ld1MRPeCD
— Graham MacGillivray (@GWMacGillivray) March 9, 2017
Carbs Solve Everything
Others got a little hangry…
Energy & Commerce Vice Chairman Joe Barton, R-Texas, offered to buy the Democrats Waffle House if they’d just stop….
When You Don’t Get Overtime Pay
And still others just couldn’t hang. One staffer fell asleep during the marathon markup hearing.
Where’s My Calculator?
Once the bill passed through committee, the next shoe to drop was the price tag. Both sides of the aisle eagerly awaited the CBO score for the bill. And when it came out on March 13, the reactions were priceless.
Dems loved the CBO score (and some fiscal conservatives joined them). In fact, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., practically beamed as she called the bill “cruel.”
However, the Trump administration and GOP leadership weren’t so fond—they were annoyed that the CBO was doing CBO things and encouraged members to ignore the CBO numbers.
However, the only numbers that matter are the vote counts, which seem to be leaning in favor of the bill. The main question at hand is—what will it be called? We’ll find out when the House votes on Thursday night if the days of #SMH are over.
Beverly Hallberg (@BevHallberg) is a contributor to the Washington Examiner’s Beltway Confidential blog. She is president of District Media Group.
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