By Brandon Moseley
Alabama Political Reporter
July 18, 2017, Senator Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) admitted that he did not have the votes to pass the Senate’s replacement for the controversial Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act 0f 2010 (better known as Obamacare).
Now that the Better Care Reconciliation Act has apparently failed, the Senate is expected to vote to simply repeal the unpopular Affordable Care Act; however that measure is expected to fail as Republican moderates: Sen. Susan Collins (D-Maine), Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-West Virginia), and Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) have already announced that they will not vote for a repeal plan of Obamacare unless there is a replacement for the law. No vote is expected on the bill that actually passed the House of Representatives, but was rejected by the Republican Senate leaders on arrival.
The Healthcare issue has been looming over the US Senate special election in Alabama.
US Senate Candidate Michael Hansen (D) said the in a statement: “The news that Senate Republicans failed to secure enough support to pass the Better Care Reconciliation Act is a welcome relief for millions of Alabamians who depend on programs like Medicaid for basic medical care that this Legislation would have cut. What this shows is that the American people are activated and engaging their elected Representatives on the issues that affect their lives.”
Hansen added, “This is a victory for Democrats, to be sure, but this is no time to rest on our laurels. President Trump is now calling on a full repeal of the Affordable Care Act, which has saved countless lives. While that is unlikely to happen, the reality is that now is the time for Democrats to be bold.”
Hansen said, “I got into this race because I believe Democrats only have a shot if we stand up for those who are being left behind and offer a positive vision to vote for. That requires us getting outside of our partisan bubbles and instead having substantive discussions with voters about how we can make their lives better. I support a transformational overhaul of the American Healthcare system to a Medicare-for-All, single-payer system.”
Hansen stated, “While the other candidates running for the Democratic nomination offer small ideas and short-term vision, I am focused on long-term, big ideas to solve our problems. Voters are aching for something new and visionary. We will continue to lose until we actually listen to voters and stand up for our values. If Democrats continue to offer modest ideas, we’ll continue to get mediocre results.”
The Birmingham area non-profit manager would be the first openly gay person elected statewide in the history of Alabama, if elected.
Seven Democratic candidates are running in the US Senate Special Primary Election. Qualified candidates are Will Boyd, Vann Caldwell, Jason Fisher, Michael Hansen, Doug Jones, Robert Kennedy, Jr., and Charles Nana.
Nine Republicans are running for the US Senate. They include: James Paul Beretta, Joseph F. Breault, Randy Brinson, Mo Brooks, Mary Maxwell, Roy Moore, Bryan Peeples, Trip Pittman, and Luther Strange.
Dom Gentile (R) and Brian McGee (D) both dropped out of the race on Monday.
The Special Major Party primaries are on August 15, 2017. The Major Party runoffs will be on September 28, 2017. The Special General Election will be on December 12, 2017.
(Original reporting by Fox News, CNN, and the Washington Post’s Juliet Eilperin, Sean Sullivan and Ed O’Keefe contributed to this report.)
