Sen. John Cornyn sees health care vote once McCain returns
The No. 2 Republican in the Senate says he fully expects a vote on the GOP health bill once Sen. John McCain of Arizona is able to return to Washington following surgery.
Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, told NBC's "Meet the Press" that there should be a vote once there is a "full contingent of senators" available.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell announced late Saturday he was delaying the vote on the bill to repeal and replace the Obama-era health care law, which had been planned for this coming week. McConnell's announcement came after McCain's office disclosed that he had undergone surgery, and doctors had advised him to stay in Arizona this week.
Before McCain's absence, the legislation was already opposed by two GOP senators in a chamber where they hold a 52-48 majority.
One of the senators against the legislation is Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky. In an interview with CBS News' "Face the Nation" Sunday, he discussed how the delay could impact the bill.
"I think the longer the bill's out there, the more conservative Republicans are going to discover that it's not (a) repeal. And the more... everybody's going to discover that it keeps the fundamental flaw of Obamacare," Paul said.
Paul suggested his own fix to the plan -- allowing "everyone in the individual market join a group plan."
"I'd let group plans be formed by anybody that wants to form them. Chamber of Commerce, a farm bureau, credit unions, you name it. I'd let anybody form an association. And what would happen is almost everybody would flee the individual market because it's a terrible place," he said.
The White House is wishing McCain a "speedy recovery" from surgery to remove a blood clot from above his left eye.
When asked at a Sunday news briefing about McConnell's decision to delay the vote, White House director of media affairs Helen Aguirre Ferre replied: "We wish Sen. McCain a speedy recovery."
Aguirre Ferre did not comment on the delay, however, and declined to say whether the president was making calls to rally support for the measure.
She said Mr. Trump had "been monitoring what's going on with health care," but could not "speak to any private conversions" Mr. Trump "may or may not have had."
