Senate Republican leaders on Tuesday announced they would delay a vote on their signature legislation to repeal and replace Obamacare. The process—much like that surrounding the House healthcare bill—has been fraught with missteps and negative press. A new poll by NPR found that just 17 percent of Americans support it, and much like House Speaker Paul Ryan’s efforts, the odds it would pass on party lines this week looked tenuous at best.
All the while, President Donald Trump, who ran on the promise of a new healthcare system, has stayed in the background, and a new report claims he’s struggling with the process. From the New York Times:
When asked by reporters clustered on the blacktop outside the West Wing if Mr. Trump had command of the details of the negotiations, Mr. McConnell ignored the question and smiled blandly.
An anonymous source for the Times corroborated that the president was unclear on specifics about the bill.
A senator who supports the bill left the meeting at the White House with a sense that the president did not have a grasp of some basic elements of the Senate plan—and seemed especially confused when a moderate Republican complained that opponents of the bill would cast it as a massive tax break for the wealthy, according to an aide who received a detailed readout of the exchange.
Mr. Trump said he planned to tackle tax reform later, ignoring the repeal’s tax implications, the staff member added.
That report echoes a sentiment that has been fomenting on the left, that maybe the president doesn’t understand the healthcare system.
can someone please just ask Trump to explain what Medicaid is to the best of his abilities
— Ashley Feinberg (ashleyfeinberg.bsky.social) (@ashleyfeinberg) June 24, 2017
Is there a single person alive who thinks the president could explain how the proposed legislation changes Medicaid reimbursement to states?
— Chris Hayes (@chrislhayes) June 28, 2017
God, I wish JUST ONCE someone would ask Trump to explain how EITHER AHCA or ACA works.
— Ana Marie Cox (@anamariecox) June 13, 2017
Trump himself seemed to downplay the urgency of the matter at a meeting on Tuesday with Republican senators, saying it would be OK if they didn’t pass a bill.
“This will be great if we get it done, and if we don’t get it done, it’s just going to be something that we’re not going to like, and that’s OK, and I understand that very well,” he said.
But for all those doubting the president’s knowledge of the topic or passion to pass a bill, he dispelled that today on social media.
Some of the Fake News Media likes to say that I am not totally engaged in healthcare. Wrong, I know the subject well & want victory for U.S.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 28, 2017
While he states that he “wants victory” for America, Trump has, alternatively, threatened the opposite, saying he should let Obamacare “crash and burn.”
Republican Senators are working very hard to get there, with no help from the Democrats. Not easy! Perhaps just let OCare crash & burn!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 26, 2017
Trump, as he is wont to do, also declared the Times assertions in their story false.
The failing @nytimes writes false story after false story about me. They don't even call to verify the facts of a story. A Fake News Joke!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 28, 2017
The Senate returns from their July 4 recess on July 11.