Senate

Rand Paul praises Roy Moore for opposing ObamaCare repeal effort

by Jordain Carney - 09/22/17 10:37 AM ET

Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) is praising Roy Moore — the former Alabama Supreme Court chief justice facing Sen. Luther Strange (Ala.) in a GOP primary runoff Tuesday — for his opposition to the latest GOP ObamaCare repeal bill.

“Good to see [Moore] gets it. He won’t vote for fake repeal!” Paul said on Twitter on Friday.

Good to see @MooreSenate gets it. He won’t vote for fake repeal! Roy Moore Speaks Out Against Graham-Cassidy. https://t.co/ii1nTyQFDp

— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) September 22, 2017

Asked if he would vote for the health-care bill, spearheaded by Republican Sens. Lindsey Graham (S.C.) and Bill Cassidy (La.), a campaign spokesman for Moore told MSNBC “if Graham/Cassidy is anything less than a full repeal, Judge Moore will not vote for it.”

{mosads}The Hill confirmed Moore’s stance with his campaign, but Moore’s spokeswoman did not respond to a request to elaborate as to whether Moore believes Graham-Cassidy qualifies as a “full repeal.”

The Graham-Cassidy legislation would overhaul ObamaCare, including ending funding for the Medicaid expansion and ObamaCare’s insurer subsidies that help low-income people buy insurance. In their place, block grants would be given to states.

But conservatives argue the bill isn’t a full repeal of ObamaCare because it shifts $1 trillion of the law’s funding to the states.

Paul’s praise of Moore is in stark contrast to Senate GOP leadership and most of the Republican conference, who have publicly backed Strange along with President Trump.

But Paul has repeatedly said he is against the Graham-Cassidy bill, calling it “ObamaCare lite.”

Calling a bill that KEEPS most of Obamacare “repeal” doesn’t make it true. That’s what the swamp does. I won’t be bribed or bullied.

— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) September 22, 2017