Top House Democrats press Trump administration on Obamacare position
Top House Democrats are pushing the Trump administration for more information on its decision to pursue the invalidation of the nation's health care law, the Affordable Care Act (ACA).
In their second request in a little over a month, five Democratic committee chairmen are demanding Trump administration officials turn over materials related to the brief filed by the Justice Department in March that argued that the law should be completely overturned. This was a shift from the administration's prior policy that just some portions of the law should be struck down.
In letters obtained by CBS News, House Oversight Committee Chairman Elijah Cummings, Energy and Commerce Chairman Frank Pallone, Ways and Means Chairman Richard Neal, Education and Labor Chairman Bobby Scott and Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler, asked Attorney General William Barr and White House Counsel Pat Cipollone for any documents related to the court filing and threatened to "consider alternative means of obtaining compliance" if the documents are not turned over.
They issued a deadline of May 24 for turning over the information. The Oversight Committee is also asking Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought to appear for a transcribed interview on May 24.
The move to fully dismantle the law, Democrats argued in their letter, "could deprive millions of Americans of health insurance coverage."
The letters come as Democrats try to highlight Republican attempts to scrap the ACA leading up to the 2020 election, and as GOP congressional members have avoided new attempts to repeal Obamacare.
President Trump has repeatedly called the GOP the "party of health care" and claims Republicans will come up with a plan to boost coverage and lower health care costs. However, Republicans have not yet unveiled any specific plan to replace the Obama-era health care law.
