The Phony Obamacare Repeal

The meticulously plotted Republican plan to repeal the Affordable Care Act and have that repeal vetoed by President Obama culminates this week. The House of Representatives has voted to eliminate the law dozens of times over the last few Congresses, but either Democratic control of the Senate or Democrats’ use of the filibuster has kept the repeal from going any further. So after last year’s midterm elections, in which the GOP gained control of the Senate, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell agreed to use the reconciliation process to get the repeal over the finish line. (Reconciliation is the one-off parliamentary maneuver that only requires a 51-vote majority.) After an expected marathon of votes on dumb amendments heading into Thursday, the bill should pass, paving the way for Obama to veto the dickens out of it.