Hi there,

This month, Democracy Now! marks 29 years of fearless independent journalism. Presidents have come, gone and come back again, but Democracy Now! remains, playing the same critical role in our democracy: shining a spotlight on corporate and government abuses of power and raising up the voices of scholars, advocates, scientists, activists, artists and ordinary people working for a more peaceful and just world. If our journalism is important to you, please donate today in honor of our 29th anniversary. Every dollar makes a difference. Thank you so much.

Democracy Now!

Amy Goodman

Non-commercial news needs your support.

We rely on contributions from you, our viewers and listeners to do our work. If you visit us daily or weekly or even just once a month, now is a great time to make your monthly contribution.

Please do your part today.

Donate

GOP Delays Healthcare Vote as President Trump Issues Ultimatum

HeadlineMar 24, 2017

It’s a showdown on Capitol Hill today. House Republican leaders called off a vote Thursday on a bill to overhaul the U.S. healthcare system, after failing to win enough support from their party’s ranks to overcome Democratic opposition. The delay prompted President Trump to issue an ultimatum: Hold a vote Friday, or lose the opportunity to repeal the Affordable Care Act. Republican House Speaker Paul Ryan emerged from Thursday night talks with obstinate lawmakers, telling reporters in a terse statement he’d comply with Trump’s call for a Friday vote.

Speaker Paul Ryan: “For seven-and-a-half years, we have been promising the American people that we will repeal and replace this broken law because it’s collapsing and it’s failing families. And tomorrow we’re proceeding.”

House Speaker Ryan exited without answering questions about whether he believed Friday’s vote would succeed. At the White House, President Trump gathered members of the right-wing Freedom Caucus for negotiations, promising to roll back requirements that health insurers cover basic services, including mental health, mammograms, maternity and newborn care. The meeting was attended exclusively by men, prompting ridicule from Democrats, including Washington Senator Patty Murray, who tweeted a photo of the event with the caption, “A rare look inside the GOP’s women’s health caucus.” It’s unclear whether the bill has the support needed to pass today’s vote. More than 30 House Republicans have threatened a “no” vote, and the bill’s supporters can’t afford more than 21 Republican defections.

The original content of this program is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. Please attribute legal copies of this work to democracynow.org. Some of the work(s) that this program incorporates, however, may be separately licensed. For further information or additional permissions, contact us.

Non-commercial news needs your support

We rely on contributions from our viewers and listeners to do our work.
Please do your part today.
Make a donation
Top