In a bizarre exchange with reporters highlighted by The Intercept, co-author of the failed Graham-Cassidy Obamacare repeal bill, Lindsey Graham (R-SC), gleefully admitted that he really didn’t know what he was doing.
After describing placing people’s healthcare in the balance as the “most amazing journey of my life,” Graham seemed to suggest that even he couldn’t believe he was at the center of a major GOP Obamacare-repeal effort, and that most of the people around him didn’t know what they were doing.
“Nobody in our conference believes Obamacare works. It must be replaced. But until now we didn’t know how to do it,” Graham told reporters this Tuesday (audio of which is posted at The Intercept).
When a reporter asked why Republicans are having so much trouble repealing Obamacare after making threats for seven years, Graham offered the disclaimer that he’s only been doing it “for about a month.”
“I thought everybody else knew what the hell they were talking about, but apparently not,” Graham said, adding he had assumed “these really smart people will figure it out.”
Again, Graham eerily talked about how much fun the whole thing was.
“I’ve enjoyed this more than anything. I’ve learned so much about health care in other states — Pennsylvania, Alaska, Ohio,” he said.
GOP leaders threw in the towel this Tuesday when it became clear they didn’t have the 50 votes they needed to pass the bill. Republicans John McCain of Arizona, Rand Paul of Kentucky, and Susan Collins of Maine came out against the legislation, effectively killing it.
Graham said the reason he tackled healthcare was because the people around him seemed clueless, causing him to take a kind of ‘what the heck’ approach. Either way, he thinks Republicans will still one day reach their goal.
“We now have an idea that I think Republicans understand, and the average person can understand,” he said.
Featured image via CSPAN
