View: Republicans prep for slowdown of Trump’s healthcare agenda
Semafor · David Lim ·
At a minimum, Republicans anticipate that a new House majority will haul Trump administration health officials into oversight hearings on a litany of topics.
Republicans won’t attach their names to this prediction, but many of them expect Tuesday’s midterms to hand Democrats at least one chamber of Congress. And they’re already bracing for President Donald Trump’s healthcare agenda to get bogged down by a divided government.
The slowdown could happen in a number of ways, GOP aides working on health policy told me — depending on how big an election night Democrats have. At a minimum, Republicans anticipate that a new House majority will haul Trump administration health officials into oversight hearings on a litany of topics, like the still-growing measles outbreak, the president’s slashing of global health aid, and the implementation of Medicaid work requirements.
Those hearings would be designed to trip up administration officials. But even if they don’t yield embarrassing headlines, Republicans are prepared for healthcare policymaking to get hairier. “Preparing for oversight and obstruction from Democrats will take 50% of our time and mean less ability to push for reforms and regulation,” a former GOP congressional staffer said.