Pro-ObamaCare group launches new ads ahead of State of the Union, GOP retreat

Ahead of President Trump’s State of the Union, a pro-ObamaCare group is launching a months-long, six-figure television ad buy that slams last year’s Republican efforts to repeal ObamaCare, saying the bills would have lead to higher premiums and millions more without health insurance.

The ads from Save My Care seek to “strengthen the Congressional firewall against repealing the Affordable Care Act, slashing Medicaid and sabotaging the health care system,” Leslie Dach, Save My Care campaign chairman, said in a press release.

The 30-second ad begins with Trump saying his administration is “probably in that position where we’ll just let ObamaCare fail” and ends with the words: “Enough is enough. Stop the Republican war on health care.”

{mosads}The television ads will air this week in Washington, D.C., and in West Virginia, where congressional Republicans will hold a retreat beginning Wednesday. They’ll also play in Alaska and Maine, the homes of Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Susan Collins, respectively, both of whom were crucial votes that sunk a scaled-down version of a GOP bill to repeal ObamaCare over the summer.

“At this week’s Republican retreat in West Virginia, Members of Congress won’t be able to look at a TV without being reminded of their harmful repeal-and-sabotage campaign, and will be encouraged to say ‘enough is enough’: It’s time to listen to what Americans demand, move on from repeal and sabotage and work on bipartisan solutions that keep and improve on the Affordable Care Act,” Dach said in the release.

It’s unlikely Republicans will return to repealing ObamaCare legislatively, but the White House is still seeking changes — that Democrats view as sabotage — to President Obama’s signature domestic achievement.

Republicans argue that ObamaCare premiums are too high and that more flexibility for states and individuals is needed.

On Monday, Alex Azar was sworn in as the new secretary of Health and Human Services in a brief ceremony where Trump gave a nod to administrative actions on health care.

“As our new secretary, Alex will continue to implement the administrative and regulatory changes needed to ensure that our citizens get the affordable high-quality care that they deserve,” Trump said at the White House.