Home Minority Chief Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) on Wednesday invoked the late-Sen. John McCain’s (R-Ariz.) dramatic and decisive vote to sink the Republicans’ 2017 effort to repeal ObamaCare throughout President Trump’s first time period — as Jeffries argued in opposition to the GOP megabill.
“What kind of occasion would deliver a invoice to the Home flooring that rips away Medicaid from these in want? What sort of occasion would deliver a invoice to the Home flooring that actually robs meals from the mouths of kids, veterans and seniors? And all of that is being performed to supply large tax breaks to their billionaire donors. It is unconscionable; it is unacceptable; it is un-American,” Jeffries stated.
“All we need are four Republicans — just four — to show John-McCain-level courage.”
Because the minority occasion within the Home, Democrats are powerless to dam Trump’s home agenda if GOP leaders can rally the votes to cross it.
However that’s not stopping them from making the vote as uncomfortable as potential for on-the-fence Republicans, particularly these dealing with robust reelection in battleground districts.
As a part of that public messaging marketing campaign, scores of Home Democrats took to the steps of the Capitol Wednesday morning to focus on essentially the most controversial components of the Republican laws, together with steep cuts to low-income well being and diet applications.
Jeffries and different Democrats known as out a number of Republican lawmakers by title, together with Reps. Scott Perry (Pa.), Rob Bresnahan (Pa.), David Valadao (Calif.) and Younger Kim (Calif.). All of them are dealing with robust reelection contests subsequent 12 months.
The show comes as Republican leaders are scrambling to lock down sufficient votes to advance the measure on the ground. A procedural vote is scheduled early Wednesday afternoon, however a number of hard-line conservatives are threatening to dam the measure.