Written by Congressman Steve Scalise
This moment was six years in the making. For the first time ever since Obamacare was foisted on the American people in 2010, a bill gutting this egregious law will actually reach the President’s desk.
It flows from the mandate we received from the millions of Americans who have sent men and women to Congress to get rid of Obamacare. For me and my colleagues, it is the culmination of our promise to do so. Included in the bill is an important provision blocking all taxpayer funding from going to abortion providers, like Planned Parenthood. We worked closely with the leading pro-life groups to include this defunding language. This is the right response to the horrific practices revealed in videos last year showing the extraction and sale of body parts from aborted babies.
On behalf of all Americans who share our conservative values, we urge President Obama to sign this bill. Of course President Obama has indicated he will veto despite the fact that his healthcare law has failed millions of Americans who have lost the good plans that they like, and are paying more for plans they don’t want. A veto would also be an insult to the overwhelming majority of Americans who don’t want to see their hard-earned tax dollars go to people who provide abortions.
Given the expected veto, some have asked why is it important to go through this exercise of sending a bill that guts Obamacare and defunds Planned Parenthood to the President’s desk. I believe there are three important points from this vote.
1. It shows the importance of a Republican president who shares our values.
No doubt the President will try to spin this moment as “just another example of Congress engaging in the same old attempts at repeal.” This vote, however, is different. By getting this bill to the President’s desk, we prove that the only piece missing to truly gut Obamacare and defund Planned Parenthood is a Republican president who shares our values and will sign this into law.
2. It shows that Congress can eviscerate this law.
Many grassroots conservatives have – understandably – grown frustrated that Obamacare is still around after putting Republicans in control of both the House and Senate. All other efforts to repeal Obamacare were passed by the House only to be blocked by the Senate’s outdated 60-vote rule that allows Harry Reid to shut down debate. That has worked to the advantage of Senate liberals…
Until now.
What this week’s vote shows, is that a unique legislative procedure called “reconciliation,” which requires only 51 votes for passage, can be used to repeal the lion’s share of Obamacare’s mandates, taxes, and spending.
Conservatives in Congress and across the country should take heart and celebrate – we now have a proven pathway to gut this devastating law, and the parliamentary precedent has been set. All that is needed now is a different occupant in the White House. That should motivate us all for November.
3. It shows the power of a unified conservative movement.
Now is the time to keep our eyes trained on the immediate and most important challenge at hand: winning the hearts and minds of the American people in order to elect a conservative to the White House.
It is critical that the abundant energy, the intensity, the passion of our conservative movement be directed to outlining for the American people the stark differences between our vision for a stronger America and the left’s failed, big government solutions. We should be united in that vision to the American people and not allow small differences on tactics to divert our attention away from the greater goal. We must unify and make our case.
The House — this House majority — is making the President confront his failed policies of Obamacare and Planned Parenthood; he can’t change the subject or talk about other issues like he has tried to do with gun control and other things. He’s going to actually have to confront this issue. In the coming days and weeks, the Republican-led House will continue to paint a contrasting vision for our nation using bold, conservative ideas to get our country back on track and restore the American Dream for future generations.