President Trump’s budget chief admits he bears responsibility for misreading the political climate in the House of Representatives that resulted in the failure of the GOP’s healthcare bill.
“I completely misunderstood and misread the tensions in the House. … So, I think one of the biggest people to blame for the failure of the health care bill was me,” Office of Management and Budget director Mick Mulvaney told the Wall Street Journal in a story Wednesday.
Mulvaney says he feels he deserves much of the blame for the bill’s demise and apologized to Trump for the collapse of the GOP’s efforts to overhaul healthcare.
“I told the president that I feel like I let him down on the first run through at health care,” Mulvaney said.
Mulvaney also offered some lighthearted anecdotes in his interview with the Journal, noting the job has been good for his waistline and has led him to drop over 10 pounds. He said the weight loss is not because of job-related stress, but because he enjoys the job so much he often forgets to eat.
As part of the administration’s efforts to win over conservatives, Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., joined Mulvaney and Trump on a golf outing. While Paul emerged optimistic about the future of healthcare reform, Mulvaney offered his own playful take of the round of golf he played with the Kentucky senator.
“I made it very clear to him on the first tee when he picked Rand Paul as his partner that all friendliness was set aside,” Mulvaney joked. “I’m not going to let Rand Paul beat me at anything. I crushed Paul by the way. I beat him by 15 shots. He was terrible.”
