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Obama, Democrats plan strategy meeting to protect Obamacare
[The Grauniad] Eager to stop Republicans from destroying his signature healthcare law, Barack Obama and Democratic lawmakers will meet next week to try to forge a common strategy. Obama also plans a major valedictory speech in Chicago, his hometown, shortly before his presidency ends.Obama will travel to the Capitol on Wednesday morning for the meeting with House and Senate Democrats, according to an invitation sent to lawmakers. The White House is casting it as an effort to unite Democrats behind a plan to protect the Affordable Care Act before Republicans have a chance to settle on a plan for repealing it. Democrats are on edge over the future of the ACA, given the GOP’s disdain for “Obamacare” and Donald Trump’s vows to gut it. Though Republicans are united behind the notion of repealing the law, they are split over how best to replace it. Some want to strip out unpopular provisions while leaving others intact, while others prefer a start-from-scratch approach. Obama and Democrats hope that lack of unity can be exploited. To that end, the president also planned to answer questions about the future of the healthcare law next Friday in a live-streamed event at Blair House, just across Pennsylvania Avenue from the White House. Initially stunned by Trump’s defeat of Hillary Clinton, Democrats are now trying to organize a counterattack to preserve the ACA, among the most significant expansions of the social safety net since Medicare and Medicaid were created 50 years ago. The House Democratic leader, Nancy Pelosi, has urged her lawmakers to make healthcare their focus at the start of the year. Defenders of the law have also launched a political coalition called Protect Our Care, bringing together more than 20 groups, including the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and the Service Employees International Union. One of their objectives is to try to prevent Republicans from repealing the ACA without also enacting a replacement. Another goal is to pre-empt bigger healthcare changes to Medicare and Medicaid long sought by Republicans. A recent poll suggests that defenders of the law may get a receptive hearing from the public. Only about one in four Americans want Trump and the GOP-led Congress to completely repeal the ACA, according to a post-election survey by the nonpartisan Kaiser Family Foundation. Obama’s speech in Chicago on 10 January is expected to serve as his closing words to the nation as president. His appearance will be open to the public and followed by a “family reunion” for alumni of Obama’s former campaigns, according to a save-the-date notice sent to Obama alumni. The White House has not confirmed Obama’s speech or trip to Chicago. Posted by: Pappy 2017-01-02 |
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