On Thursday, the U.S. Senate approved a budget bill that would not only defund the highly controversial Planned Parenthood organization, but also repeal a significant portion of President Barack Obama’s signature achievement, his 2010 health care overhaul: Obamacare.
While Obama is sure to veto the bill, it marks the first time legislation designed to deconstruct Obamacare and defund Planned Parenthood has made its way to the White House. Prior attempts to pass similar bills have been shot down by Democrats before they managed to reach Obama’s desk.
In regards to the decision that the bill presents Obama with, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said that the president has a choice, “He can defend a status quo that’s failed the middle class by vetoing the bill, or he can work toward a new beginning and better care by signing it.”
President Obama will have a choice (…) He can defend a status quo that’s failed the middle class by vetoing the bill, or he can work toward a new beginning and better care by signing it.
Democrats argue that millions are now insured and have indicated that their medical coverage has improved, the Washington Post reported.
The bill cleared the senate with a vote of 52 to 47.
Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) was quoted by the Post as having said that the bill would “undo the progress we have made” and that it’s “not what our families and communities want.”Attacking Planned Parenthood’s funding and dismantling Obamacare are, according to CNN Politics, two of the two priorities for the Republicans currently in control of the senate.While the bill won’t pass, as Barack Obama is sure to veto it, the message from Republicans to voters is clear: if you elect a GOP president in the upcoming presidential elections and you ensure that they maintain control of Congress, Obamacare will be dismantled.
