Brent Batten: Two congressmen, one party, two views on health care impasse

When they write the history of the failed Trump presidency (and let’s face it, the academicians who write such histories are going to label it as a failure, no matter what happens from here on out), they’ll point to things such as tweeting, Russia, nepotism, dissembling, naivete and boorishness.

But another reason, possibly the main one, is his own party in Congress.

Republican candidates for the U.S. House and Senate universally ran on a platform that included repealing Obamacare as one of its main planks.

In the years since its passage in 2010, they have passed bill after bill to defund it or roll back its provisions, knowing full well that President Barack Obama would veto any attempt to deconstruct his signature policy achievement.

Now, with Donald Trump in the White House eager to fulfill his own promise to oversee the demise of the Affordable Care Act, Republicans have hit a wall, unable to pass a coherent piece of legislation that does what they said they would do.

How is it possible, that after seven years of complaining, posturing and promising, the Republicans didn’t have a plan for success if and when they came to power?

Two Collier County congressmen, both Republicans but with different experience in the system, have predictably different takes.

“I have asked that question to every leader up here I can find,” said U.S. Rep. Francis Rooney, who represents western Collier County in the House. “As a business person, I can’t understand how they didn’t have contingencies in place. It really frustrates me.”

Rooney was elected in 2016 and wasn’t around for the politics and show votes that preceded the Trump presidency.

Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart, who represents the eastern part of Collier County, has been in office since 2002. The question is more complicated and nuanced than critics let on, he said.

He acknowledges though that it’s easier to campaign against something than it is to legislate.

“When it’s real and it’s becoming a politically difficult decision, you get people who are getting cold feet,” he said.

Rooney is more blunt.

“Now that they’re not shooting blanks, they no longer want to point the gun.”

At its root, national health care policy is a complicated issue that lacks a simple fix, Diaz-Balart said.

The bill passed by the U.S. House includes many provisions advocated by former Rep. Tom Price, now the secretary of Health and Human Services.

“It’s much better than Obamacare. It’s not perfect,” Diaz-Balart said.

The Senate hasn’t adopted the House bill and has struggled mightily to come up with its own version.

While bills to roll back Obamacare came and went in the days before the 2016 election, Republicans knew there would be no impact.

“The process didn’t start in earnest until there was a chance to get it done. The concept was coordinated, but the details, how it would affect different districts, how it would affect parts of states, those details weren’t settled,” Diaz-Balart said.

Diaz-Balart said with insurance companies pulling out of the exchanges set up by Obamacare, it is important that Congress pass some form of replacement.

Collier and Hendry counties, for instance, have only one insurer offering policies through the exchange, he points out.

“Obamacare is collapsing. It’s going to continue to collapse,” he said. For those who rely on coverage through the exchanges, “it could be catastrophic,” he added.

Both representatives said the next move is up to the Senate, where no bill has garnered majority support. On Wednesday, Trump called Republican senators to the White House to encourage action.

Some senators argue the bills they’ve seen don’t do enough to undo Obamacare. Others fear it goes too far.

“One of the things I’ve learned is how wide a range of ideologies and positions there is in the Republican conference,” Rooney said.

Diaz-Balart said as frustrating as the process may seem, crafting comprehensive national legislation to deal with an issue as personal as health care is bound to be challenging.

Republicans didn’t want to write something behind the scenes, then rush it to passage, something he accused Democrats of doing with Obamacare in 2010.

“There was this line: ‘You have to pass the bill to see what’s in the bill.’ The Republicans didn’t want to do that. They wanted a regular process with the ability to amend and change,” he said. “I’m not happy the Senate hasn’t been able to get it done, but it’s difficult.”

With his newcomer’s perspective, Rooney puts it in simpler terms.

“I just think it’s about time politicians keep their promises to their constituents. Up here, keeping promises is pretty irrelevant sometimes. It’s no wonder people are fed up with those guys, and I say ‘those guys’ because I’m still a business person.”

He believes voters can make a difference by calling or writing their senators and representatives.

“The real power is at home, thank goodness,” Rooney said.

And what happens next?

“Your guess is as good as mine,” said the veteran Diaz-Balart.