— Robert Costa (@costareports) March 24, 2017
The President and House Speaker Paul Ryan evidently have not whipped the needed votes in the lower chamber of the legislature to pass their bill that would eliminate coverage for 24 million Americans. The decision to not hold a vote is a way for the Republican party to save itself from embarassment, anticipating that it would not have the needed 218 House votes.
On Friday morning, Trump's Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin said he was "optimistic" that the House would pass the bill.
Trump, the 'negotiator in chief,' evidently has not provided enough incentive for lawmakers on the right and the left to vote for the bill. Further, whip counters say that if the bill gets through the House, it will face further scrutiny and harsher criticism in the Senate.
Rep. Brendan Boyle confirmed that the "GOP just pulled the bill."
Republicans also delayed Thursday's vote, when it was slated to definitively take place, once and for all. By Friday morning, Trump reportedly told his party that the bill would not endure anymore negotiation, and that Friday was the last day Republicans would have to overturn the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 24, 2017
Trump said, "I don't blame Paul," reffering to the House Speaker from Wisconsin. Ryan had gone to the White House to tell Trump around 3 p.m. that the GOP did not have enough votes to pass the American Health Care Act. On Friday, White House Press Secretary claimed President Trump "left everything on the field" in attempting to sway skeptical congressional members. Such language usually indicates someone is giving up on exerting more effort.
Indeed, Trump has long promulgated his excitement for enacting tax reform, often saying that healthcare would be fixed by allowing insurers to sell health plans across state lines.
In healthcare reform, there is no magic silver bullet. Trump is learning that the hard way.
Nevertheless, the longer it takes for the Trump administration to repair America's massive healthcare system, the longer America's middle class will have to wait for Trump's tax cuts.
Rep. Barry Loudermilk of Georgia said the GOP plans to continue fine tuning the AHCA. Loudermilk did not provide a timeline of when the GOP would have a polished plan--even though they've said for the past seven years that they had one ready to go, under Budget Reconciliation. That same bill that was "ready" on Day One of Trump's presidency, has now been postponed twice, even though Republicans control the House, the Senate, and the Presidency.
— Senator Bob Menendez (@SenatorMenendez) March 24, 2017