Democrats reeling from the Republican vote on Thursday in the House to repeal and replace ObamaCare vowed to hold GOP lawmakers responsible for their actions.
“Americans will hold them accountable,” said Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) during a news conference that included top Democratic House leaders moments after the vote in the House.
They blasted a celebration planned in White House Rose Garden with President Trump and Republican House members.
“They are going to celebrate something that comes way short of what the president promised. … They are celebrating a broken promise,” Hoyer said, referring to Trump’s campaign pledges to replace ObamaCare with lower premiums and provide “insurance for everyone.”
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi warned Republicans who voted for the GOP-backed American Health Care Act: “They have put their name next to some of the worst provisions in this bill.”
She lambasted Trump and the Republicans for celebrating the 217-213 vote, calling the healthcare bill a way to transfer money from the middle class to the nation’s wealthiest.
“The trickle down crowd is having a beer party in the Rose Garden,” Pelosi (D-Calif.) said.
Her California colleague, Rep. Linda Sanchez, said, “Republicans own Trumpcare now.”
“Millions of Americans who will see their premiums increase … can thank Republicans and Donald Trump,” said Sanchez (D-Calif.)
South Carolina Democrat Jim Clyburn called the Affordable Care Act the civil rights act of the 21st century and called repealing it an “inhumane” act.
Recalling how Martin Luther King Jr. called “injustice in healthcare is the most shocking and inhumane” forms of inequality, he said getting rid of ObamaCare will “allow the most egregious forms of discrimination against the most vulnerable in our society.”
“I think Martin Luther King got it right 50 year ago and we got it wrong today,” he said.