Confusing GOP rhetoric made it harder for them to 'repeal' or 'reform' Obamacare.

The Republican Party is gearing up for a critical push to reform the tax code. After the spectacular collapse of its seven-year effort to repeal Obamacare this summer, the GOP is in desperate need of a victory.

And according to Republican leaders, that victory is all but assured. Earlier this week, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., observed, “If there’s anything that unifies Republicans, it’s tax reform.”

But it’s far from clear that’s the case.

Conspicuously absent from such platitudes is any indication of what, exactly, tax reform means.

That’s because it means different things to different people.

And therein lies the problem for Republicans. The vague language they use to communicate with voters implies a level of agreement within the GOP that may not exist.

James WallnerOctober 28, 2017Congress, Republicans, Tax Reform, ObamacareComment

Republican efforts to repeal Obamacare are dead. This simple mistake is why

The Republican Party's seven-year crusade against Obamacare is effectively over.

Now begin the recriminations over who is responsible.

The GOP's failure can be traced to a single tactical blunder: the decision to repeal and replace Obamacare in a single bill -- A decision, of course, that doomed the party's efforts to do both.

James WallnerSeptember 26, 2017Republicans, ObamacareComment

Under reconciliation, it'll be harder than you think to amend the Senate healthcare bill

Changing a reconciliation bill in the Senate is harder than you think. And the reason why has nothing to do with healthcare policy.

While senators are correct to note they have a "virtually unlimited opportunity" to offer amendments to reconciliation bills, the special rules governing that process make it less likely that alternative proposals will receive serious consideration on the floor. Given this, senators should not be quick to assume that beginning debate on the healthcare bill this week will lead to a different outcome if their amendments are not allowed to be debated openly and do not receive up-or-down votes on the merits. Ensuring this requires senators to know exactly what it is that they are amending.

James WallnerJuly 25, 2017Senate, Budget, Reconciliation, Obamacare, Leadership

Why the GOP is struggling to repeal Obamacare

It's almost July and the Republican Party has yet to repeal Obamacare due to divisions within its own ranks. Everything that we thought we knew about the GOP suggests that this should not be the case.

What explains this sudden change in the policy views of Republicans? One explanation is that party affiliation is not as important as previously thought in explaining member behavior once in office. But far from suggesting that parties don't matter, the GOP's present struggles demonstrate that parties matter in a different way. Obamacare's fate ultimately depends on how Republicans view their party.

James WallnerJune 20, 2017Republicans, Obamacare