Sen. John McCain declared his opposition today to the GOP’s last-ditch effort to repeal and replace “Obamacare,” dealing a likely death blow to the legislation and, perhaps, to the Republican Party’s years of vows to kill the program.
“I cannot in good conscience vote for the Graham-Cassidy proposal,” McCain says in a statement, referring to the bill by Sens. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina.
His opposition likely leaves the bill at least one vote short of the support needed for passage. That would leave Republicans with 49 votes, at most, for the bill. They would need 50, plus Vice President Mike Pence to break a tie, in order to prevail in the 100-member Senate.
“I believe we could do better working together, Republicans and Democrats, and have not yet really tried,” McCain says. “Nor could I support it without knowing how much it will cost, how it will affect insurance premiums, and how many people will be helped or hurt by it.”
Cassidy expressed his disappointment to McCain’s decision in a statement issued this afternoon. “I am disappointed that Senator John McCain is not voting to repeal and replace Obamacare. But, as long as there are families being penalized because they can’t afford insurance costing $30,000 to $40,000 a year, I will continue to work for those families,” he says.
McCain was the decisive vote against the GOP’s last repeal effort, in July. Once again, the 81-year-old senator, battling brain cancer in the twilight of a remarkable career, emerged as the destroyer of his party’s signature promise to voters.
GOP leaders had hoped to bring the legislation to the floor next week. They face a Sept. 30 deadline, at which point special rules that prevent a Democratic filibuster will expire.
