Rand Paul says he won’t be “bribed or bullied” on Obamacare repeal vote

Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., speaks to reporters at the Capitol after Republicans released their long-awaited bill to scuttle much of President Barack Obama's Affordable Care Act, at the Capitol in Washington, Thursday, June 22, 2017. He is one of four GOP senators to say they are opposed it but are open to negotiations, which could put the measure in immediate jeopardy. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) says he “won’t be bribed or bullied” when it comes to the Graham-Cassidy proposal to repeal Obamacare.

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President Trump said Friday morning that if Paul refused to vote for the repeal effort, he would come to be known as “the Republican who saved ObamaCare.”

“Rand Paul, or whoever votes against Hcare Bill, will forever (future political campaigns) be known as ‘the Republican who saved ObamaCare,’” Trump tweeted.

https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/911173124976193536

RELATED: Trump calls Rand Paul a “negative force” on Republican Obamacare repeal efforts

In response, Paul said that the bill does not fully repeal Obamacare, maintaining his ongoing argument that the bill is just another GOP version of “Obamacare Lite.” He has consistently called for a full repeal of the Affordable Care Act, pointing out that the free market is best suited to handle health care needs.

“No one is more opposed to Obamacare than I am, and I’ve voted multiple times for repeal.  The current bill isn’t repeal,” Paul tweeted. “I won’t vote for Obamacare Lite that keeps 90% of the taxes & spending just so some people can claim credit for something that didn’t happen.”

Paul also slammed the “swamp” for calling a bill that keeps most of Obamacare a repeal. “Calling a bill that KEEPS most of Obamacare ‘repeal’ doesn’t make it true. That’s what the swamp does. I won’t be bribed or bullied,” he concluded.

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In an op-ed for Fox News earlier in the week, the conservative senator said that the new repeal bill, like the ones before it, keeps Obamacare regulations and taxes in place to the detriment of American taxpayers.

As of Friday morning, Paul is the only GOP senator so far to indicate that he will be voting “no” on the Graham-Cassidy repeal bill. Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), and John McCain (R-Ariz.), who all voted “no” on the “skinny repeal” effort back in July, have not yet indicated how they will vote.

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