Huelskamp: A tactical change on Obamacare

The same man who was pushing to shut down the government just a few weeks ago to defund the Affordable Care Act, now says another government shutdown to stop funding for ACA isn’t likely to happen in January according to a recent Politico story. 

Huelskamp still says that Obamacare must be repealed, but he adds that he’s now willing to downsize his demands and “pass something that says you can keep your plan if you like it.”

Huelskamp says he has other plans for battling the law.  Along with other conservative lawmakers, the second-term Republican is planning to sue the federal government. Because of a provision in Obamacare, lawmakers must purchase their government-subsidized health insurance from D.C.’s exchange.  Huelskamp said those plans include coverage for abortion, which means the government could be subsidizing such procedures.

“The exchange pays for abortion,” Huelskamp said in an interview. “Since 1977 and 1983, we’ve had pretty clear prohibitions on federal employees and abortion coverage.”

Huelskamp represents western Kansas, an extremely conservative district nicknamed the Big First, where allies and rivals both say Huelskamp has no Republican opposition on the horizon, and the district is far too conservative for any Democrat to post a real threat.