It’s still very much up in the air whether Speaker Paul Ryan has the votes to get Trumpcare through the House, and Democrats have decided to get out of the way and let Republicans fight amongst themselves.
“Republicans now are dealing with the fact that they’ve built a castle on a foundation of lies,” Rep. Jim Himes (D-Conn.), who chairs the moderate New Democrat Coalition in the House, said in an interview. “The last thing we would want to do is get in their way.” [...]
… Democratic leaders are discouraging members from offering amendments when the Rules Committee meets to debate the GOP health care bill on Wednesday. And on Thursday, Democrats don’t plan on offering a “motion to recommit,” the procedural move typically proposed by the minority to delay passage of a bill on the floor.
Their thinking, according to multiple sources, is that offering amendments to improve the bill, if adopted, would give wobbly Republicans cover to vote for the repeal — hampering Democrats’ chances of tanking the proposal before it even reaches the Senate.
Democrats will have plenty to say about the bill and they will take every opportunity to speak out, but Republicans will own Trumpcare fully and completely, without Democratic efforts to improve it muddying the waters about who voted for or against it, and for what reason.
The House is scheduled to vote on Trumpcare on THURSDAY, MARCH 23. Even if you already called your member of Congress, do it again by calling the Capitol Hill switchboard at (202) 224-3121. Jam the phone lines, urge them to vote NO.