President Trump signed the GOP tax reform bill into law yesterday, formally delivering an initial signature victory in his first year at the White House.
And he immediately touted it as a double-win.
First, obviously, is the reality that the bill delivers tax relief to more than 80% of Americans.
Which represents the big tax cut in 30 years.
But equally as important is a provision in the bill that removed the penalty enshrined in Obamacare for not having health insurance.
That means Obamacare is effectively dead because whether Americans buy into it or not is, now, of absolutely zero consequence.
Checkmate.
Here’s more from Washington Examiner…
President Trump on Friday declared Obamacare “over” as he signed the Republican tax bill that repeals the law’s individual mandate penalties.
Repeatedly describing as “unfair” the requirement that individuals who do not purchase insurance pay a fine, Trump said of eliminating the penalties, “Essentially, I think it ultimately leads to the end of Obamacare. I think Obamacare is over because of that.”
He also reiterated his vow that “we’re going to come up with something that’s really going to be very good.”
Trump said, “The individual mandate was very unfair, because you’re basically saying, pay for something in order to not have to get healthcare. So you’re paying — you’re paying not to have healthcare. It was very unfair. Many people thought it should have been overturned at the Supreme Court.”
Republicans failed to deliver on their seven-year promise to repeal and replace Obamacare this year, but when it came time for tax reform, they rallied around repealing the individual mandate’s penalties. Nixing the penalties served multiple purposes: it allowed them to tout the repeal of at least one aspect of Obamacare and it produced $338 billion of savings that could be used to help the finances of their tax reform package.
