Donald Trump gave Trumpcare 2.0 a positively glowing review Thursday when he was asked to prioritize passing the second repeal effort next week or a continuing resolution to keep the government funded. “I want to get both,” he quipped. (Spoiler alert: Not gonna happen.)
But first, a little background. White House aides, already once bitten on health care, are fretting over how to paint 2.0’s chances for success. As the New York Times writes.
The legislation’s future is unclear. For now, the proposal exists only in vague talking points. West Wing advisers to Mr. Trump are decidedly mixed in their views of how aggressively to raise expectations.
Meanwhile, elsewhere in the White House, Trump had a different take during a joint press conference with Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni.
This is a great bill, this is a great plan. And this will be great healthcare. It is evolving. [...] The plan gets better and better and better and it’s gotten really, really good. And a lot of people are liking it a lot. We have a good chance of getting it soon.
To be fair, Paul Ryan appears to be selling the same load of baloney.
“We’re in the midst of negotiating sort of finishing touches,” Speaker Paul D. Ryan said this week in London while leading a congressional delegation.
Okay, so we’ve entered the GOP land of legislative unicorns: Vague talking points = Finishing touches.
One expectation Trump did downplay was timing. While he admitted wanting to pass the just terrific set of vague talking points next week, he stayed, well, vague: "We have a good chance of getting it soon [...] whether it is next week or shortly thereafter."
Next week is a pipe dream, by the way. They'll be lucky to keep the government funded as Trump's crack team makes demands that threaten to doom the spending bill.
Watch Trump's health care answer below.