Democrats dare Republicans to continue their ObamaCare repeal effort

Republicans have given up trying to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act this fiscal year, which ends Saturday, but they are already saying they might try again next year; on Wednesday, President Trump said congressional Republicans will return to ObamaCare in the first quarter of 2018. "To the Republicans vowing to keep their ObamaCare repeal drive alive for as long as it takes," Politico reports, "Democrats say: Please, and thank you."

Democrats are unified in fighting to protect ObamaCare, and that's one of the things they appreciate about the GOP's repeated tries at chipping away at the law: It unifies Democrats. The other reason, Politico says, is that Democrats believe Republicans keeping their unpopular effort going during the election year could help them win control of the House and give them a fighting chance at taking the Senate. "I think they are falling into an enormous trap of their own making," said Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.). "And have at it."

A recent poll from the nonpartisan Kaiser Family Foundation suggests there are upsides for both parties. Overall, 76 percent of voters say it is very or extremely important for Congress to reauthorize the Children's Health Insurance Program, 70 percent say the same for passing legislation to stabilize the ObamaCare marketplaces, and only 47 percent say that about continuing the push to repeal ObamaCare. Those numbers are about the same for independent voters. Republicans, on the other hand, want their leaders to continue the repeal fight rather than stabilize the markets by a 66 percent to 28 percent margin, while Democrats want their leaders to focus on stabilizing ObamaCare over pushing for national health care 52 percent to 43 percent. You can read more results at the Kaiser Family Foundation, and more about the Democrats' feelings on the GOP's enduring crusade at Politico.

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