GOP Leaders Still Don’t Have Votes for Health Bill

David Nather: “Here’s the reality that President Trump and Republican leaders are facing: They want to repeal Obamacare, but not the popular parts of Obamacare. But to the most conservative Republicans, and their supporters, repeal means repeal — which includes everything, whether it’s popular or not.”

“That’s why Trump and GOP leaders haven’t been able to close the deal with the Freedom Caucus, and will have to try to steamroller them with today’s vote. It’s why they have the Koch brothers after them. And it’s why, barring a miraculous turnaround, they’re not getting any closer to a deal that can survive the Senate as well as the House.”

Jonathan Swan: “The GOP leadership’s view was that they’re still short on the vote count, and they wanted to be assured of 216 votes before putting it on the floor. They think if the bill comes to the floor with less than the required number, the vote will collapse on them. They say simply calling a vote is not going to cause the whip count to go up. Members don’t want to vote on something that will fail.”

The Hill counts 34 House Republicans still against the bill.