TRUMPCARE: Murray Urges Advocates: “Yesterday Was Not a Victory…We Need to Dial Up the Pressure to the Maximum”

At rally with Planned Parenthood, coalition partners, Murray warns “this is when the backroom deals, arm-twisting go into overdrive”

Murray: “You can bet they will put everything they have into passing Trumpcare—and they will do it on the backs of women, children, workers, those with disabilities, the sick, and the elderly”

(Washington, D.C.) –  Today, Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), top Democrat on the Senate HELP Committee, delivered the following remarks at a rally with advocates after Republican leadership decided yesterday to delay a vote on their Trumpcare bill due to overwhelming pressure and lack of support from members of their own party. At the rally, Murray underscored the urgency of the situation by making clear that Republicans will be back more determined than ever, and that advocates should dial up the pressure and continue to show up at Senate offices, make phone calls, email, and tweet.

Key excerpts from Senator Murray’s remarks:

“I want to be very clear about this, yesterday was not a victory—not even close. Yesterday was an opportunity! An opportunity to keep making your voices heard—to keep rallying, and to keep talking to your friends, neighbors, and family members about how devastating Trumpcare would be. An opportunity to send a message—loud and clear—to Republican leaders. Those 13 men cutting backroom deals, twisting arms, giving out “sweeteners”; those 13 men making decisions about your lives, your health care access, and your reproductive rights—they clearly didn’t want to hear from you this week! That’s why they met in secret, included no women, and tried to jam through this bill. And you can be sure—they are now going to try harder than ever. So now is the time to make sure they hear your voices—louder and stronger!”

“Because while Mitch McConnell delayed the Trumpcare vote, he didn’t say he was giving up—quite the opposite. This is when the backroom deals and arm-twisting go into overdrive. And right now, Republicans hope to lock a deal by—the end of this very week, get through the recess as quickly as they possibly can, and come right back and ram this bill through. Now we don’t yet know what deals they’ll cut, or which Republicans they’ll be able to flip, but we do know: they are not going to give up. They want to get to yes—and so does President Trump.”  

“So you can bet they will put everything they have into passing Trumpcare—and they will do it on the backs of women, children, workers, those with disabilities, the sick, and the elderly. By increasing premiums for seniors and people of color, undermining protections for people with pre-existing conditions, forcing women to pay more for maternity care, kicking millions off Medicaid, banning abortion coverage. And—hear this—taking away access to critical services at Planned Parenthood!”

Full text of Senator Murray’s remarks, as prepared for delivery:

Well, I have to say, I am so proud to see all of you here today—moms, dads, students, patients, doctors and teachers. Because, here's the thing, you didn’t become complacent after yesterday’s news. You didn’t lose focus. You got right back at it the very next day. And you’re getting more engaged. You’re keeping up the pressure. And that’s exactly what we need right now.

Because, and I want to be very clear about this, yesterday was not a victory—not even close. Yesterday was an opportunity! An opportunity to keep making your voices heard—to keep rallying, and to keep talking to your friends, neighbors, and family members about how devastating Trumpcare would be. An opportunity to send a message—loud and clear—to Republican leaders.

Those 13 men cutting backroom deals, twisting arms, giving out “sweeteners”; those 13 men making decisions about your lives, your health care access, and your reproductive rights—they clearly didn’t want to hear from you this week! That’s why they met in secret, included no women, and tried to jam through this bill.

And you can be sure—they are now going to try harder than ever. So now is the time to make sure they hear your voices—louder and stronger! Because while Mitch McConnell delayed the Trumpcare vote, he didn’t say he was giving up—quite the opposite. This is when the backroom deals and arm-twisting go into overdrive.

And right now, Republicans hope to lock a deal by—the end of this very week, get through the recess as quickly as they possibly can, and come right back and ram this bill through. Now we don’t yet know what deals they’ll cut, or which Republicans they’ll be able to flip, but we do know: they are not going to give up. They want to get to yes—and so does President Trump.

And so you can bet they will put everything they have into passing Trumpcare—and they will do it on the backs of women, children, working families, those with disabilities, the sick, and the elderly.  

By increasing premiums for seniors and people of color, undermining protections for people with pre-existing conditions, forcing women to pay more for maternity care, kicking millions off Medicaid, banning abortion coverage.

And—hear this—taking away access to critical services at Planned Parenthood! Now we know just how damaging that is and how quickly patients feel the impact. This week, in Iowa, 15,000 women will lose access to care because several clinics will shut down due to a state Republican defunding law. Now, you may be thinking, well, something like that can’t actually happen nationwide—but you know what? It can! And it could, if Republicans pass Trumpcare. We can’t take those chances.

So, my questions is—are you all fired up? Are you ready to get in this fight? I know you are! Let’s be clear—you made an incredible difference this week. In fact, I was talking to Planned Parenthood, and they told me that delaying Trumpcare, just by 10 days, is going to allow them to continue to serve over 81,000 patients. 81,000 patients—just by delaying Trumpcare for 10 days.

The health of those patients and so many more are at stake in the next few weeks. That’s why we need to dial up the pressure to the maximum. That’s why we need to defeat this bill. And that’s why we need all of you here today to continue leading the way.  So thank you for everything you’ve done—and thank you for doing so much more in the days and weeks ahead.

There’s no one I’d rather be with in this fight than all of you. Thank you, and let’s get to work! 

###