As Republicans in Congress desperately push to pass their disastrous TrumpCare bill, Connecticut’s GOP leaders are once again leading from behind. It was only after Democrats invited Republicans to call on President Trump to halt the passage of their ‘plan’ to repeal the Affordable Care Act that Senate GOP leader Len Fasano and House GOP leader Themis Klarides wrote a weakly-worded, watered-down letter to the president asking him to maybe delay the bill’s passage. Clearly, this letter was a political move, not a genuine attempt to preserve the progress Connecticut has made under the Affordable Care Act.

In fact, the GOP letter only asks for more time, not a halt, to TrumpCare’s passage. Let’s be very clear: A delay is not what’s needed. As the Congressional Budget Office – a trusted, nonpartisan agency – reports, the GOP plan would strip health coverage from 24 million Americans within ten years, and the Office of Policy and Management estimates that this bill would cost the state of Connecticut $1 billion per year once fully implemented.

“Why on earth wouldn’t the GOP sign on to Democratic efforts to stand up to Donald Trump and stop the passage of this horrible bill? Because Connecticut Republicans are more interested in scoring political points than helping people. As Trump and his national GOP allies attack Connecticut values – slashing critical antipoverty programs like Meals on Wheels, gutting environmental research, and even eliminating heating assistance for 110,000 poor Connecticut families, we need Republicans to stand up to their own party. Sadly, so far we have seen nothing, and this is yet another example of Len Fasano and Themis Klarides leading from behind.” – Connecticut Democratic Party Executive Director Michael Mandell