Surprise! Republicans in Congress, especially those in not-too-safe districts and/or districts in which Hillary Clinton won the popular vote, are balking at the idea of taking away health insurance from their own constituents in order to give a tax cut to the 1%. Who could have predicted that?
To be fair, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen is not your typical Republican Congressperson. She was born in Cuba, and has been a strong backer of immigrant communities and comprehensive immigration reform. She is the mother of a transgender child, and supports trans rights.
And her district went for Hillary Clinton.
The fact that she is announcing her "NO" vote is a big deal. Most whiter, male-er GOP congressmen are hedging on that, pointing people to vague objections to process and "expressing concerns" about coverage for their constituents.
But she is likely to have other colleagues with her as the vote occurs. And that spells trouble for those who hope to repeal Obamacare. Huffpo:
You can easily name about a dozen conservatives who have come out strongly against the legislation and appear unwilling to support the bill even with changes. They include Reps. Justin Amash (R-Mich.), Dave Brat (R-Va.), Mo Brooks (R-Ala.), Scott DesJarlais (R-Tenn.), Louie Gohmert (R-Texas), Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.), Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), Steve King (R-Iowa), Raul Labrador (R-Idaho), Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), Tom McClintock (R-Calif.), Mark Sanford (R-S.C.) and Ted Yoho (R-Fla.).
Then there are a handful of more moderate members who look apt to vote against the bill or have already said they won’t support it. Put on that list Reps. Mark Amodei (R-Nev.), Charlie Dent (R-Pa.), Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.), Leonard Lance (R-N.J.), John Katko (R-N.Y.), Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), Tom MacArthur (R-N.J.), Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-Fla.), and Rob Wittman (R-Va.).
The defection of those lawmakers would be enough to sink the GOP bill in the House.
If your congressman is listed above, and even if they aren't, we have to keep the heat on them to vote no on this tax cut for billionaires disguised as a health care bill.