Senate

GOP senator: Leadership trying to ‘jam’ through healthcare bill

by Jordain Carney - 06/26/17 10:46 AM ET

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) is accusing Senate GOP leadership of trying to rush through a bill to repeal and replace ObamaCare this week, urging lawmakers to take more time with the legislation.

“I see what leadership is trying to do. They’re trying to jam this thing through. It is far from a perfect bill, but I’m not going to let perfect be the enemy of the good,” Johnson told conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt during an at times combative interview on Monday.

He said “all I’m asking is let’s give ourselves a few more days, maybe a week or two, don’t jam this thing in three or four days.”

The Senate is expected to vote later this week on the GOP healthcare bill, which was publicly released late last week. Several Republican senators have voiced concerns that leadership is moving the legislation too quickly.

{mosads}Johnson added on Monday that “we don’t need to do this by Thursday.”

“I think I’m being very reasonable about this. … None of the input [conservatives] provided was included in this bill. Virtually nothing,” he said. “What we’re saying is at least give us an opportunity to work with the White House. …But we won’t have that time if this thing is jammed.”

Johnson is one of four conservative senators — along with Ted Cruz (Texas), Rand Paul (Ky.) and Mike Lee (Utah) — who said late last week that they could not currently support the bill.

Hewitt noted those senators were his “pals,” but said it wasn’t realistic to think GOP senators would be able to delay the legislation and get more time to negotiate.

“I just beg you, Ron Johnson, you know I supported you for two election cycles, do not kill this bill this week,” Hewitt said.

Hewitt added in the interview, in which he and Johnson repeatedly tried to talk over each other, that voting against the legislation would “kill the bill and the Republican majority in the House and maybe the Senate.”

Senators take a procedural vote on the bill as early as Tuesday, which would pave the way for a final vote on Thursday or early Friday.

Johnson declined to say how he would vote on the initial hurdle, but argued he wasn’t trying to “kill the bill.”

“I don’t know about motion to proceed. It depends on what information I get before that vote is taken. Right now I’ve got no information. I’ve got limited information,” he said.

Tags Mike Lee Rand Paul Ron Johnson Ted Cruz