Rep. Tim Ryan, D-Ohio, said Thursday his party must work with Republicans to improve their healthcare bill, which he described as a "travesty" on CNN.
"The current one is a travesty, but I love what Sen. [Chuck] Schumer did yesterday saying, 'let's all go to the Blair house. Let's all sit down and figure how to do this,'" the congressman said on "CNN Newsroom," in response to The New York Times article about possible bipartisan cooperation on the GOP healthcare proposal.
"Actually, that's what's supposed to happen here in Washington, D.C.," he added. "So I was excited that he said that, and I hope that the president will take him up on that. But we've got to figure out what the goals are here."
Ryan then referenced the report from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, which found the number of people uninsured would rise 22 million in less than 10 years under the Republican plan.
The congressman was then asked about his praise for Schumer in light of his criticism of Democratic leadership in the House, particularly of House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.
"I'm not going to get into the internal family squabbles," Ryan said. "I've been clear since December what we need to do with leadership in the House. No need to beat that dead horse. I was making a point, watching Sen. Schumer operate in the last 24 to 48 hours, I thought what he did was appropriate because that's what the American people want us to do."