Conservative group targets Charlie Dent over Obamacare repeal struggles

Morning Call (Allentown, PA)

April 14--A fiscally conservative Washington advocacy group has launched ads against Republican U.S. Rep. Charlie Dent and nine other House GOP lawmakers, accusing them of stalling efforts to repeal and replace Obamacare.

The television and digital ads that began Thursday are part of a $1 million ad buy from the Club for Growth.

The spots urge Dent and others, including western Pennsylvania congressman Tim Murphy, to support a revamped version of the Obamacare repeal bill that was pulled from a House vote last month due to a lack of support.

An updated bill hasn't been released. But the Trump administration and conservative lawmakers have discussed potential changes to that legislation, such as allowing states to seek federal waivers that would lift requirements that prevent insurers from charging high premiums to sick individuals and cover certain medical services.

"President Trump and House conservatives have come together with a new plan," the ad says. "It lowers premiums by giving Pennsylvanians the freedom to end Obamacare's costly and ridiculous rules. So, who's standing in the way? Professional politicians like congressman Charlie Dent."

The ad urges viewers to call the Lehigh Valley lawmaker's office.

Dent, who co-chairs the Tuesday Group caucus of GOP moderates, described the ad as "bewildering," noting that the same group ran ads in late March urging him and others to oppose the House GOP health care bill.

"At end of the day, I have to vote yes or no based on how it will affect my constituents," Dent said. "I don't have the luxury of a D.C. special interest group, which was against the bill before they were for it."

Dent said the potential changes discussed so far haven't altered the opposition he voiced over the House GOP proposal. He has called for working with Democrats on a new health care reform approach.

He also questioned why some of the GOP legislators were targeted by the ad campaign. New Jersey Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen, who heads of the Appropriations Committee, had opposed the GOP bill.

However, another representative another on the receiving end, Oregon Rep. Greg Walden, had pushed the measure through the House panel he chairs, the Energy and Commerce Committee.

Club for Growth President David McIntosh cast blame for the bill's struggles on Dent and others, accusing them of "trying to keep as much of Obamacare in place as they can."

But the scuttled House plan had faced opposition from both ends of the Republican conference: Conservatives said it didn't repeal enough of Obamacare's provisions or do enough to tamp down skyrocketing costs, while Dent and other centrists had raised concerns about the effect it would have on those who rely on the law's insurance subsidies and expanded Medicaid program.

Both chambers of Congress are on a two-week recess and will return April 24 to tackle government spending bills that need to be approved by the end of that week.

After that, tax reform and infrastructure spending are among the priorities for the White House and congressional leaders, leaving an unclear path for efforts to repeal Obamacare.

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