Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI)
Wisconsin’s Republican U.S. Senator is not giving up hope on his longstanding goal of repealing and replacing Obamacare, while his Democratic colleague is calling for a bipartisan effort to make the Affordable Care Act better.
Ron Johnson was one of the Republican senators who met with President Trump at the White House on Wednesday to talk about the latest GOP efforts on health care. Johnson told Fox 6 News in Milwaukee that he’s not about to give up on repealing and replacing the ACA.
“I’ve never thrown in the towel. I will not throw in the towel. Sounds like other people were saying we’re facing defeat, so I’m hoping that this meeting at the White House snatched victory out of the jaws of defeat,” Johnson said.
Johnson, who earlier in the week was critical of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, said he does not envy the task McConnell faces. President Donald Trump ordered senators to stay in Washington through their scheduled August recess, until they pass a bill to repeal and replace the 2010 health care law.
Johnson was among a group of Republican Senators who met later on Wednesday in an attempt to find a way forward on repeal and replace. It remains unclear how a planned vote next week might go, or whether it will even happen in the absence of Arizona Senator John McCain, who has been diagnosed with brain cancer.
Senator Tammy Baldwin, the Wisconsin Democrat, is calling for bipartisan healthcare solutions. “Let us presume that with everybody’s input and everyone’s engagement we are able to defeat this repeal effort. The path forward is finally working together to make things better not worse,” Baldwin said.
Baldwin said bipartisan legislation to stabilize insurance markets is “ready to go.” And she and Arizona Republican John McCain have a bill to bring greater transparency to prescription drug pricing. “And the president might just stop and reflect on the fact that he has expressed support for things that Democrats support too.”