Federal Government Policy and Business

House leaders prepare to vote Friday on health-care reform

The Washington Post: The House of Representatives is set to vote Friday to overhaul the nation’s health-care system after President Trump delivered an ultimatum to Republicans: Approve it, or reject it and the president will move on to his other priorities. A vote is expected later Friday, and lawmakers began considering the bill during a rare early-morning session of the panel that sets rules for House floor debate. At the same time, White House officials were confidently anticipating victory. “Yesterday was the seventh anniversary of the signing of Obamacare. Today should be the beginning of its unwinding,” White House Budget Director Mick Mulvaney said on “CBS This Morning,” adding later that “We want to take Obamacare away and give people the control and the options that they want.” [Conservatives want these essential benefits abolished under a new deal] Mulvaney was dispatched to the U.S. Capitol on Thursday to tell rank-and-file Republicans in a closed-door meeting that Trump was done negotiating with them. It was a high-risk gamble for Trump and House Speaker Paul D. Ryan (R-Wis.), who have invested significant political capital trying to pass legislation that would replace the 2010 Affordable Care Act.

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