Biden returns: What's next in the Obamacare fight?
In the eyes of some Democrats, he might be the hero the party deserves 鈥� and the hero it needs.
Former Vice President Joe Biden returns to the political stage as a not-so-silent guardian of Obamacare just two months after leaving office. Joining House minority leader Nancy Pelosi and other Democrats on the steps of the Capitol, an Obamacare rally will mark an unusually political start for a post-vice presidency.
The Democratic leaders will gather on the front steps of the Capitol at 10 a.m. Wednesday in a joint celebration of Obamacare鈥檚 7th anniversary and in protest of its potentially imminent repeal, according to Politico. The rally will be one of Mr. Biden鈥檚 first political appearances since leaving office in January.
Billed as a celebration of Obamacare, the demonstration will feature Americans who have benefited from law. They may not succeed in protecting the legislation, but they鈥檒l certainly be watching when a repeal bill goes up for vote on Thursday, the actual anniversary of the law鈥檚 signing.
Whether the repeal will go through or not is unknown, even among conservatives. Architect of the replacement American Health Care Act and Speaker of the House Paul Ryan told Fox News he feels 鈥溾�� about the bill鈥檚 passage while Republican Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky predicted failure for the plan, which he calls 鈥�.鈥�
The replacement law is widely considered to be but , and would lead to one out of every 13 Americans , according to a report from the Congressional Budget Office.
"What they have put forth is a terrible bill 鈥� , which the Speaker calls an act of mercy," said Ms. Pelosi of the plan on Sunday鈥檚 鈥淢eet the Press.鈥�
On top of near universal resistance from the Democrats, the law faces opposition from Republicans as well, with moderates finding it too severe and more extreme conservatives believing it doesn鈥檛 go far enough. Republicans are currently scrambling to rewrite the law to include , and President Trump has threatened that those who don鈥檛 fall in line may have .
The repeal bill needs 216 votes to pass, and Trump implied that constituents would punish lawmakers who voted against it. Others believe the reverse may be true.
鈥淚 think if we do vote for this we will lose the majority,鈥� said Republican Mo Brooks of Alabama, according to Bloomberg. 聽
While no one can be sure of the effect Biden鈥檚 political power will have on the bill鈥檚 uncertain status, the move is unusual for an ex-vice president. Past leaders have , if they could resist the lure of the presidency.
But Biden鈥檚 outspokenness on Obamacare is in line with past comments indicating that he never intended to keep quiet in private life.
"While I will not be a candidate, I will not be silent" Biden announced in 2016 after declaring he would not run for president. "I intend to speak out clearly and forcefully, to influence as much as I can where we stand as a party and where we need to go as a nation," he said, according to The Washington Post.
And Wednesday鈥檚 rally could be the first move in getting the old gang back together. Obama has also hinted that he plans to be an unusually vocal ex-president as well.
"Look, I have to be quiet for a while," Obama told senior advisor David Axelrod. But after a year or two, he said, certain issues might compel him to speak up. "You know, , and that carries with it duties and obligations," he said, according to USA Today.
Obama also has plans for an unorthodox presidential library that will serve as a 鈥溾�� that will play a supporting role for young leaders and organizations, the BBC reports. 聽
Even Hillary Clinton, who鈥檚 kept a low profile since the election, is indicating that she feels a signal calling her back to public life.
鈥淚鈥檓 like a lot of my friends right now. I have a hard time watching the news, I鈥檒l confess,鈥� she said at a St. Patrick鈥檚 Day dinner in Scranton, Pa. 鈥淚 am ready to come out of the woods and to on what is already happening around kitchen tables, at dinners like this.鈥�
