Consider the following two inconvenient facts:
1. The Senate is GOP controlled, and
2. The signature legislation that the GOP has been pushing for years is the repeal of ObamaCare.
One would think that Donald Trump, who ran on the GOP ticket, would have negotiated the passage of the legislation as soon as he assumed office. But he hasn’t. There are all sorts of excuses about the Democrats being obstructionists to GOP members demanding too much. The bottom line, though, is that Donald Trump ran on the notion that he was a great negotiator; a great deal maker, if you will.
Any government policy requires that legislation is adopted through negotiation. Seldom, if ever, will all legislators agree. Such is the nature of democracy. In this case, we have the closest thing to like-minded policy makers in the Senate, the House and in the presidency, all led by Republicans, who have as their center piece, the agenda of repealing ObamaCare.
The legislature is controlled by the GOP and Trump ran on the GOP ticket. All of them have the goal of repealing ObamaCare.
But it remains the law of the land.
What happened to the deal maker that promised to deliver on his promises? It seems Trump voters were duped.
For those astute readers reading this today, I am aware of that the Trump administration has issued a directive to the IRS to not enforce the mandate requirement. The funding legislation prohibits the federal government from using money to enforce the insurance requirement. So why am I still voluntarily reporting my failure to keep health insurance and thus paying the fine?
Because of the broken immigration system. I am not a citizen, but a legal resident of the country. As a resident, I must abide by all the laws to be allowed to remain in the country. In case you haven’t noticed, the Donald Trump administration has ramped up deportations for legal immigrants when they run afoul of the law.
Although the Trump administration has ordered officials not to pursue those that fail to carry health insurance, the mandate law remains in place. As a non-U.S. citizen, I must abide by the law. If I do not self-report, I would be breaking the law and thus subject myself to possible deportation.
My only relief would have been a repeal of ObamaCare.
But no, Donald Trump can’t deliver even on the most basic and central promise that the Republicans can agree on and promised to their constituency.