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As Democrats pounce on his apparent suggestion to get rid of the Affordable Care Act, House Speaker Mike Johnson has walked back his comments on the health care law, accusing the Harris campaign of mischaracterizing his remarks.
“Despite the dishonest characterizations from the Harris campaign, the audio and transcript make clear that I offered no such promise to end Obamacare, and in fact acknowledged that the policy is ‘deeply ingrained’ in our health care system,” Johnson said in a statement to NBC News.
That was Wednesday. On Monday, the speaker said at an event in Pennsylvania that Republicans are “going to have a very aggressive first 100 days agenda” if Donald Trump is re-elected, with health care reform being “a big part” of it, NBC News first reported. At one point, someone in the crowd asked, “No Obamacare?” and Johnson replied, “No Obamacare. The ACA is so deeply ingrained, we need massive reform to make this work, and we got a lot of ideas on how to do that.”
Democrats took Johnson’s remarks as a vow to repeal the law should Trump return to the White House. The Harris campaign warned that health care is on the ballot, adding, “Speaker Mike Johnson is making it clear — if Donald Trump wins, he and his Project 2025 allies in Congress will make sure there is ‘no Obamacare.’”
Even Trump’s campaign distanced itself from Johnson’s comment. “Repealing Obamacare is not President Trump’s policy position,” campaign spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said.
Republicans have long criticized the Affordable Care Act and, as president, Trump made a number of failed attempts to undo it. The Supreme Court has also repeatedly upheld the law. Despite the campaign’s efforts to keep Johnson’s sentiments at arm’s length, it’s entirely plausible that Trump could seek to repeal the ACA again. He has continued to signal that that possibility is on the table, even though he said as recently as September that he merely has “concepts of a plan” to replace it.