Señor Trumpanzee was up nice and early in the morning, playing on his failed social media site, whining about how Biden had beaten him in 2020, something no one outside of his crackpot MAGA/conspiracy theory base wants to hear about any longer. And he added in that Biden is trying to lock him up. Very Christmasy... and exactly what you would expect from a deranged and utterly obsessed old misanthrope like Trump.
A few hours later, he was back on his site, this time trying to undermine ObamaCare and threatening to replace it with something “much better,” a promise he made in 2016 and promptly forgot once Putin helped install him in the White House. It was a great Christmas president all right— for the Democratic Party— and heartburn for Republicans, especially for the ones up for reelection.
The trend in recent polls, like the Kaiser Family Foundation Health Tracking Poll (May 2023), show 59% of Americans have a favorable view of the ACA, with 41% holding an unfavorable view. Nearly 9 in 10 Democrats (89%) view the ACA favorably, while nearly 3 quarters of Republicans (73%) hold unfavorable views. Most independents (62%) are also favorable.
Support for some specific provisions, like Medicaid expansion, is even higher, exceeding 80% across party lines. The ACA prohibits insurance companies from denying coverage or charging higher premiums based on pre-existing conditions. This protects millions of Americans with chronic illnesses or disabilities from facing medical discrimination. Surveys indicate around 90% of Americans support this provision. That’s why the Democratic Party is so delighted whenever Trump brings up trashing ObamaCare— and why the DCCC and DSCC are so eager to make sure GOP candidates have to take public stands for or against Trump’s ravings. I’d love to listen to vulnerable swing district Republicans like Michelle Steel (CA), Anthony D’Esposito (NY), Young Kim (CA), Don Bacon (NE), Zach Nunn (IA), Nick LaLota (NY), Mike Garcia (CA), Tom Kean (NJ), Brandon Williams (NY), Maria Salazar (FL) Ken Calvert (CA), Mike Lawler (NY), John Duarte (CA), Brian Fitzpatrick (PA) and a dozen or two others explain why they agree— or disagree— with Mr. MAGA on taking away healthcare for over 40 million Americans.
Have I missed Nikki Halley or Ron DeSantis making this into a campaign issue? Not a chance! While he was in Congress, DeSantis voted to repeal ObamaCare and to raise the age of eligibility for Medicare, and during his time as governor, he and his puppet Republicans in the state legislature have opted against expanding Medicaid, making it one of 10 states that haven’t broadened Medicaid eligibility. Haley has also called for the age of eligibility to be raised (as has Chris Christie) and while she was governor she took the same unpopular position as DeSantis— refusing to expand Medicare in her state. Ramaswamy tried oozing to Trump’s right on the issue: “My friend Donald Trump promised us: repeal and replace Obamacare. Eight years later, did it happen? No, it did not. It is a false promise if it is contingent on Congress.”
One caveat: Trump could win on this issue and put Biden in an untenable position by proposing a robust version of Medicare-for-All. It would be a brilliant stroke… even if it would cause his Republican allies in Congress to feel unbalanced.