Republicans touted
their Senate victory Thursday in passing a bill to reverse key provisions of the Affordable Care Act, with Texas Sen. Ted Cruz calling it "a significant step towards repealing every word of Obamacare."
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell in a speech from the Senate floor called the 52-47 vote "a victory for the middle class families who’ve endured this law’s pain for too long."
Americans have suffered in their medical choices, the affordability of their care, the availability of their doctors and hospitals and insurance plans they wanted to keep, McConnell said.
He called the vote a means "to build a bridge away from Obamacare and toward better care."
He urged the House to pass the Senate version and forward it to President Barack Obama, who has vowed to veto any attempt to gut his signature legislation.
Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush was quick to express his support for the legislation:
The GOP-led Congress doesn't have the votes to override a veto, but will use the veto as a 2016 campaign issue.
Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson said as much in his response.
"If the president refuses and instead vetoes this bill, our repeal is a marker for what a Republican Congress again will pass in 2017 under an administration that is willing to admit the harm done by Obamacare," Johnson said.
Johnson cited higher costs, canceled policies, lost doctors and fewer choices for care.
"Today, Senate Republicans fulfilled our promise to end the negative consequences of Obamacare by repealing the president’s unaffordable health law," said Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch. "It's now time the Obama administration and Democrats own up to the law’s failures, reverse course, and work with Republicans to forge patient-centered reforms that reduce costs and improve care for the American people."
"While the president will likely veto the bill and prioritize his own legacy over the well-being of American families, this debate is far from over," said South Dakota Sen. John Thune. "Republicans will not back down from the fight to help the individuals, families, and businesses hurt by Obamacare."
Utah Sen. Mike Lee said the bill doesn’t just "tinker around Obamacare’s edges," but lays the groundwork for it to be "erased from the books altogether."
"Obamacare is a complete failure," added Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton.
Oklahoma Sen. Jim Inhofe noted that the bill also defunds Planned Parenthood, after a series of undercover videos showed what appeared to be Planned Parenthood officials admitting they sold aborted fetal parts for research.
"It's time to put an end to this failed experiment and its broken promises so we can enact real reforms that will finally lower costs and expand access to more Americans," said Republican National Committee Chairman Chairman Reince Priebus.
FreedomWorks CEO Adam Brandon said his organization was happy to see the bill passed through the reconciliation process, which allowed a simple majority vote.
"Since the beginning of the year, FreedomWorks activists sent more than 47,000 messages to lawmakers urging repeal of Obamacare through reconciliation," Brandon said.
Democrats were quick to try to use the vote for their own advantage too, sending out a fundraising email to urge people vote for a Democratic president and Congress in 2016.