GOP leaders in new Congress call for repeal of ObamaCare

As the 112th Congress is called to order, Republican leaders promise to seek a repeal of the president’s health care reform law which has become known as ObamaCare.

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) said that repealing the health care reform law is consistent with the majority’s “cut and grow” policy which focuses job creation and cutting spending.

“The bill, itself, spends entirely too much money,” Cantor stated in a press release. “We know it is a trillion dollar plus price tag to the bill. That is money we don’t have. And it is also associated with so many regulations that have put too much uncertainty into the mix as far as the private sector is concerned. We just need to repeal it, as the American people have spoken out and said. We need to go about making sure we resume a path towards the kind of health care people expect, as well as an economic environment that provides more certainty for growth.”

Halting a ‘job-killing’ binge

House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) called the health care reform law “job-killing” and highlighted the repeal as a top item on the party’s agenda.

“In the Pledge to America, Republicans made a clear commitment to cut Congress’ budget, and in our first full day on the job, we will do just that,” Boehner stated in a Jan. 4 press release. “To reverse Washington’s job-killing spending binge, sacrifices will be required throughout the federal government, and we are starting with ourselves. After taking this step, we will turn our attention to the rest of the federal budget, and the policies that are making it harder for small businesses to get people working again, including the job-killing health care law.”

Cantor noted that the legislation for the repeal would be “straightforward.”

“It is going to reflect what I think most people inside the Beltway and outside the Beltway understand about the health care bill that was passed,” he said. “It is a job-killing health care bill that spends money we don't have, and we need to repeal it and replace it with the kind of health care that most Americans expect.”

‘Fruitless’ effort

Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said that repealing the law would hurt Americans and put insurance companies back in charge.

“Republicans’ obsession with repealing health care reform is going to hurt real people, but it could also jeopardize our fragile economic recovery by spending countless hours trying to repeal health care reform rather than focusing on jobs, the economy and deficit reduction,” Pelosi said in a Jan. 4 press conference. “Every minute wasted on trying to repeal health care reform fruitlessly is one less minute the Republicans will spend on job creation and turning this economy around. Fruitlessly trying to nick health care reform to death is going to take hundreds of hours of staff time, floor time and member time. We cannot take our eyes off the prize of continuing our economic recovery. We are going to watch for every Republican hypocrisy and call them on it when we see it.”

References:

http://majorityleader.house.gov
http://speaker.gov
www.democraticleader.gov

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