Whatever their disagreements, Republican presidential contenders agree on one thing: Obamacare must go — now more than ever since the Supreme Court has upheld the law a second time.
Immediately following the high court upholding subsidies paid to federal Obamacare exchange customers, the Republican 2016ers deluged reporters’ email boxes with a cascade of statements denouncing the decision and President Obama’s Affordable Care Act.
All pledged to overhaul the new Obamacare system for U.S. healthcare if elected president, ensuring that opposition to the law remains front and center in the primary campaign.
“I am disappointed by today’s Supreme Court ruling in the King v. Burwell case. But this decision is not the end of the fight against Obamacare,” Jeb Bush said. “As president of the United States, I would make fixing our broken healthcare system one of my top priorities. I will work with Congress to repeal and replace this flawed law with conservative reforms that empower consumers with more choices and control over their healthcare decisions.”
The former two-term Florida governor, accused of being an establishment moderate by some conservative activists, sounded about as aggressive as Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, one of the Tea Party’s favored presidential candidates.
“Every GOP candidate for the Republican nomination should know that this decision makes the 2016 election a referendum on the full repeal of Obamacare,” Cruz said as part of a lengthy statement.
“I have made repeal of this disastrous law a top priority since the first day I arrived in the Senate and have made its repeal central to my campaign. Any candidate not willing to do the same — and campaign on it every day — should step aside.”
As a matter of policy and politics, the Supreme Court’s decision in King v. Burwell was a victory for President Obama and the Democrats. The ruling preserves a key component of the healthcare law, and that could help improve Americans’ opinion of a statute that they have largely opposed since it was enacted in 2010. But the politics could favor the Republicans as well, at least in terms of the 2016 elections.
Had the justices ruled that Obamacare only made insurance subsidies available for Americans who purchase policies on state exchanges, as the text of the law states, the approximately 6.5 million who buy coverage on HealthCare.gov and receive a subsidy could have lost their healthcare. The Republicans would have been forced to propose a solution, leading to intraparty fighting if they couldn’t agree on an alternative.
Battle lines were already being drawn in Congress and on the campaign trail between Republicans who said it was Obama’s problem and the GOP should do nothing, and those who said they couldn’t leave voters high and dry. Their strategy was to pass a bill that maintained subsidies for a period of time as Obamacare was phased out of existence. The Republican governors running for president might have faced pressure to create state exchanges, verboten in the primary.
With the Supreme Court’s decision, Obamacare can remain what it has been for the past six years: an issue that has united Republicans as much as any in the last 35 years. The following is a sampling of reactions from the party’s presidential contenders:
Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina: “Today’s decision only reinforces why we need a president who will bring about real reform that repeals Obamacare and replaces it with a plan that expands consumer choice, increases coverage, delivers better value for the dollar and gives states more control without stifling job creation. As president, this is the kind of reform I would put in place.”
Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal: “President Obama would like this to be the end of the debate on Obamacare, but it isn’t. The debate will continue because the law has failed to accomplish its prime objective: containing healthcare costs. Republicans must outline a clear and coherent vision for healthcare to win the trust of the American people to repeal Obamacare. And right now, I am the only candidate to put forward a comprehensive plan.”
Businesswoman Carly Fiorina: “It is outrageous that the Supreme Court once again rewrote Obamacare to save this deeply flawed law despite the plain text and in the face of overwhelming evidence that the law is not working for the majority of Americans…The lasting solution here is what we’ve been saying all along. We need to repeal Obamacare. It hasn’t worked. We need to do the one thing we’ve never tried in our healthcare system — real competition.”
Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky: “This decision turns both the rule of law and common sense on its head. Obamacare raises taxes, harms patients and doctors and is the wrong fix for America’s healthcare system. As president, I would make it my mission to repeal it, and propose real solutions for our healthcare system.”
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker: Today’s Supreme Court ruling upholding the administration’s implementation of Obamacare means Republicans in the House and Senate must redouble their efforts to repeal and replace this destructive and costly law…Now, instead of just finger-pointing from the president for why his law is failing, we need real leadership in Washington, and Congress needs to repeal and replace Obamacare.”
Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee: “Today’s King v. Burwell decision, which protects and expands Obamacare, is an out-of-control act of judicial tyranny. Our Founding Fathers didn’t create a ‘do-over’ provision in our Constitution that allows unelected Supreme Court justices the power to circumvent Congress and rewrite bad laws. The Supreme Court cannot legislate from the bench, ignore the Constitution…”
Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry: “While I disagree with the ruling, it was never up to the Supreme Court to save us from Obamacare. We need leadership in the White House that recognizes the folly of having to pass a bill to know what’s in it. We need leadership that understands a heavy-handed, one-size-fits-all policy does nothing to help health outcomes for Americans.”
Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida: “I disagree with the Court’s ruling and believe they have once again erred in trying to correct the mistakes made by President Obama and Congress in forcing Obamacare on the American people. Despite the Court’s decision, Obamacare is still a bad law that is having a negative impact on our country and on millions of Americans. I remain committed to repealing this bad law and replacing it with my consumer-centered plan that puts patients and families back in control of their healthcare decisions. We need Consumer Care, not Obamacare.”
Disclosure: The author’s wife works as an adviser to Scott Walker.
