Right Media Blames Senate For Obamacare | The Daily Caller
Description: Senate Republicans -- and not President Donald Trump -- are in the center-right media's crosshairs if the Senate fails to repeal Obamacare, all early indications show. Where in the Senate, however, th
Keywords: brian kilmeade,dean heller,donald trump,drudge report,fox & friends,hugh hewitt,ken cuccinelli,matt drudge,mike lee,obamacare,rand paul,rob portman,rush limbaugh,senate conservative fund,susan collins

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WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 27: U.S. Speaker of the House Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) (L) and Senate Majority Leader Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) (R) speak to members of the media in front of the West Wing of the White House February 27, 2017 in Washington, DC. Ryan and McConnell had a meeting with President Donald Trump earlier. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

# No One Is Safe: Center-Right Media Targets Obamacare Repeal Ire On Senate, Spare President

Will Ricciardella
10:21 AM 07/19/2017
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Senate Republicans — and not President Donald Trump — are in the center-right media’s crosshairs if the Senate fails to repeal Obamacare, all early indications show. Where in the Senate, however, the blame lies — liberals, conservatives, leadership — depends on where you look.

The Drudge Report, a powerful center-right web aggregator that was an early Trump booster, lambasted congressional Republicans, running the headline “most unproductive Congress in 164 years” at the top of the site.

The Obamacare overhaul looks like it may be torpedoed in the Senate after Republican senators from the left and the right of the party said they will vote against it.

Some center-right media commentators blamed the moderates, others blamed the conservatives, some blamed both.

“Fox & Friends” co-host Brian Kilmeade singled out both the left and right members of the party, addressing Sens. Rand Paul, Rob Portman and Susan Collins. “These people are being true to their school,” he said, “just not true to their party, and maybe not true to their country.”

### Who Do You Blame For The Obamacare Repeal Fallout?

Moderate Senate Republicans Like Susan Collins Conservative Senators Like Rand Paul Mitch McConnell Democrats President Trump Himself All Of The Above

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Conservative radio host Laura Ingraham singled out only conservative members Sens. Mike Lee and Rand Paul in a tweet, asking “Q[uestion] for @SenMikeLee & @RandPaul: Why is keeping Obamacare preferable to any alt[ernative] that could get 50 GOP votes in the Senate?”

Another conservative talk show host, Hugh Hewitt, directed his dissatisfaction at moderate GOP Sen. Dean Heller of Nevada for opposing the bill, questioning his intelligence (“he’s not the sharpest knife in the drawer”) and lamenting the damage he has done to the Republican Party. Heller is perhaps one of the most vulnerable GOP Senate incumbents up for re-election in 2018.

Rush Limbaugh hammered “establishment” Republicans for being too afraid of the bill’s unpopularity: “You gotta know where to take the battle and fight, and I’m sorry — investing in the Republican leadership to carry your water? Who ever thought that would work?”

Senate Conservative Fund President Ken Cuccinelli said in a statement that his group will “seek to identify, recruit, and fund conservative challengers against Republican senators who vote against repeal. If they won’t keep their word and if they can’t find the courage to repeal a liberal takeover of our health care system that has hurt so many American families, they should be replaced by someone who will.”

The GOP’s failure to repeal Obamacare, and the time spent doing so, jeopardizes Republican lawmakers’ ability to grapple tax reform as well as the likelihood of passing legislation on infrastructure this year. This could leave Trump and the GOP with no meaningful legislative victories in his first year as president.

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Tags: Brian Kilmeade, Dean Heller, Donald Trump, Drudge Report, Fox & Friends, Hugh Hewitt, Ken Cuccinelli, Matt Drudge, Mike Lee, Obamacare, Rand Paul, Rob Portman, Rush Limbaugh, Senate Conservative Fund, Susan Collins
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