# ACA/Obamacare repeal in 2018 - A winning issue for Republicans? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [May 3, 2018, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aca-obamacare-repeal-in-2018-a-winning-issue-for-republicans/813509 "2018-05-03T14:30:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![EddyTeddyFreddy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eddyteddyfreddy/32/18796_2.png) [@EddyTeddyFreddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EddyTeddyFreddy)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2018, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aca-obamacare-repeal-in-2018-a-winning-issue-for-republicans/813509/22 "2018-05-09T01:57:40Z")
> [@Chisquirrel](#): > > What else are they going to run on, Clinton’s emails and Benghazi? You laugh, but… ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2018, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aca-obamacare-repeal-in-2018-a-winning-issue-for-republicans/813509/23 "2018-05-09T02:00:13Z")
Oops, posted to the wrong thread! Move along, nothing to see here. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2018, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aca-obamacare-repeal-in-2018-a-winning-issue-for-republicans/813509/24 "2018-05-09T02:55:12Z")
> [@Chisquirrel](#): > > What else are they going to run on, Clinton’s emails and Benghazi? Why mess with success? ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2018, 7:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aca-obamacare-repeal-in-2018-a-winning-issue-for-republicans/813509/25 "2018-05-09T07:24:24Z")
Make my day. They’d only remind the voters that they didn’t deliver on their biggest promise, and that they still don’t have any sort of reasonable replacement. That should work up the base. Not to mention that voters are far from ecstatic about the tax cut bill that they did pass. Voters are not seeing a lot of extra money, and as little Marco noted, they are seeing that the business tax cuts are to a large extent going to stock buybacks that are benefiting investors and execs. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2018, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aca-obamacare-repeal-in-2018-a-winning-issue-for-republicans/813509/26 "2018-05-09T14:12:53Z")
> [@Chetumal](#): > > So they’re not going to “get involved with” Medicaid, but instead, “focus on” Medicaid. > > Huh?? And who does Santorum mean by “we”? That quote was just typical stream-of-nonsense talk to fill air time, not something from somebody who’s actually part of any sort of organization. However, his audience \*is \*the “Get your government hands off my Social Security” faction, so it’s not all wasted. Look for them all to have to explain why they sabotaged the funding base for ACA and its premiums are suddenly becoming far less affordable - and why an added $1.5 trillion on the national debt is a good thing. ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2018, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aca-obamacare-repeal-in-2018-a-winning-issue-for-republicans/813509/27 "2018-05-09T16:15:32Z")
My reading of the political winds is that the polling of Trump and the Republicans in Congress has become less abysmal this year compared to the previous because they’ve stopped trying to push their agenda. Doing something popular is better than doing nothing, which is better than doing something unpopular. Since their agenda doesn’t have anything popular, doing nothing is the best they can try. ---
**Author:** ![2ManyTacos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/2/3da27b/32.png) [@2ManyTacos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/2ManyTacos)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2018, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aca-obamacare-repeal-in-2018-a-winning-issue-for-republicans/813509/28 "2018-05-16T14:39:19Z")
The plan discussed above is going to be released sometime this month. [Here is an outline of it.](https://twitter.com/TopherSpiro/status/996759810648498179) ---
**Author:** ![Fiddle\_Peghead](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiddle_peghead/32/3506_2.png) [@Fiddle\_Peghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiddle_Peghead)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2018, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aca-obamacare-repeal-in-2018-a-winning-issue-for-republicans/813509/29 "2018-05-16T16:17:07Z")
> [@Chetumal](#): > > From [here:](http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2018/05/02/exclusive-rick-santorum-on-obamacare-repeal-plan-we-have-an-obligation-to-fix-whats-broken/) > > "Santorum argued…We are not going to get involved with Medicaid and trying to fix Medicaid. We did not promise in 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016 that we are going to fix Medicaid, we said that we are going to repeal and replace Obamacare.” > > Then, two sentences later he says they "will focus on the Medicaid expansion, the tax credit system, the horrible waste money that is the Obamacare regulations that were put in place.” > > So they’re not going to “get involved with” Medicaid, but instead, “focus on” Medicaid. > > Huh?? I would suggest that “not going to get involved with Medicaid and trying to fix Medicaid” means exactly that, and “focus on the Medicaid expansion” means trying to denigrate it as much as possible in the hope of killing it in states that may want it, which are not mutually exclusive. ---
**Author:** ![Ambrosio\_Spinola](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9de0a6/32.png) [@Ambrosio\_Spinola](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambrosio_Spinola)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2018, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aca-obamacare-repeal-in-2018-a-winning-issue-for-republicans/813509/30 "2018-05-16T16:26:51Z")
> [@2ManyTacos](#): > > The plan discussed above is going to be released sometime this month. [Here is an outline of it.](https://twitter.com/TopherSpiro/status/996759810648498179) So, I guess we watch to see if they do a budget resolution. ---
**Author:** ![Chetumal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/839c29/32.png) [@Chetumal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chetumal)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2018, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aca-obamacare-repeal-in-2018-a-winning-issue-for-republicans/813509/31 "2018-05-16T22:32:09Z")
> [@Ambrosio\_Spinola](#): > > So, I guess we watch to see if they do a budget resolution. Didn’t they already pass the budget for 2018? I thought that now there is no way to do anything via reconciliation this year, am I mistaken? ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2018, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aca-obamacare-repeal-in-2018-a-winning-issue-for-republicans/813509/32 "2018-05-16T23:07:23Z")
There are a thousand ways to fuck with Obamacare, to hinder, thwart, and eventually, kill. Then, when the real victims scream, they will say “Obamacare failed, so its his fault”. Some of the people, all of the time. Same people. ---
**Author:** ![Silver\_lining](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aca169/32.png) [@Silver\_lining](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silver_lining)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2018, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aca-obamacare-repeal-in-2018-a-winning-issue-for-republicans/813509/33 "2018-05-26T19:24:30Z")
Simply blaming high-cost health care on Obamacare is a winning issue. ---
**Author:** ![Lantern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d26b3c/32.png) [@Lantern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lantern)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2018, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aca-obamacare-repeal-in-2018-a-winning-issue-for-republicans/813509/34 "2018-05-26T19:34:08Z")
I am skeptical that there will be another Obamacare repeal attempt before the election. Republicans are behind right now but their numbers have improved somewhat giving them a realistic shot of pulling an upset and retaining both chambers. This is not the kind of position in which parties feel comfortable taking big risks as Obamacare repeal would certainly be. Secondly, with the Alabama election and McCain’s health problems the chances of Obamacare repeal passing the Senate have decreased even more so why waste a lot of political capital on it? Of course if Republicans do manage to defend both chambers, all bets are off and there could very well be a serious repeal attempt in 2019. ---
**Author:** ![2ManyTacos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/2/3da27b/32.png) [@2ManyTacos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/2ManyTacos)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2018, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aca-obamacare-repeal-in-2018-a-winning-issue-for-republicans/813509/35 "2018-06-19T14:11:28Z")
[The Heritage/Santorum plan is out.](https://medium.com/@consensusgroup2018/the-health-care-choices-proposal-policy-recommendations-to-congress-a4660182d830) Apparently it precludes states from using the reduced block grants to reestablish Obamacare or set up a single payer plan, which is basically just the imposition of ideology. States’ rights my ass. Discuss. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aca-obamacare-repeal-in-2018-a-winning-issue-for-republicans/813509.md?page=1)