President Trump has been getting his feet wet quicker than any recent president. The media dislikes him on the whole, Democrats obstruct him at every move and his recent policy on a travel ban in selected Muslim countries, Supreme Court pick and cabinet selections meet with walls of opposition.
His biggest dilemma has been Obamacare. Two weeks ago he discovered he didn’t have the votes in his own party to pass a bill to change its dynamics. But now it seems the president has come to a deal with conservatives.
Obamacare repeal and replace could be back on the map by week’s end. It now appears that House Freedom Caucus members and White House officials are hopeful they can reach an agreement in negotiations over the resurrected plan to repeal and replace Obamacare,.
This all comes about after President Trump’s threats to ditch the conservative voting bloc and strike a healthcare deal with Democrats instead. The legendary negotiator was probably playing a huge bluff with that threat and never was going to follow through. Now it is time to patch up the differences with many of the people who got him elected.
A Freedom Caucus source told the Washington Examiner, “I’m cautiously optimistic that we may be able to reach a path forward by week’s end. Despite the administration saying a week or so back they’d no longer pursue healthcare reform at this time, that has changed and we continue to be in active communication with the White House.”
That is good news for Trump’s early credibility and the rest of his first term agenda. In his first start out of the blocks with major legislation on Obamacare, it ended in bitter defeat. House Speaker Paul Ryan canceled a planned floor vote and signaled negotiations would conclude for the foreseeable future.
It can be assumed that in the next attempt, the votes will be there before the House is convened. Lesson learned by the rookie politician getting his feet wet in “the swamp.”
