Obama calls on Congress to have the 'courage' to protect ObamaCare

Caroline Kennedy and former President Barack Obama.

(Image credit: Pool/Getty Images)

published 8 May 2017

While accepting the Profile in Courage award from the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library Sunday night, former President Barack Obama said it was his "fervent hope, and the hope of millions" that members of Congress, regardless of party, vote against repealing ObamaCare.

In his first public remarks since the House voted on Thursday to repeal most of the Affordable Care Act, Obama commended those who helped it pass in 2010, and said he wants members of Congress to know they should "look at the facts and speak the truth, even when it contradicts party positions." It takes "little courage to aid those who are already powerful, already comfortable, already influential — but it takes great courage to champion the vulnerable and the sick and the infirm," he continued. "I hope they understand that courage means not simply doing what's politically expedient, but doing what, deep in our hearts, we know is right."

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Explore More

Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

Subscribe to The Week

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox