House Speaker Paul Ryan said he’d like to pass the fast-track Obamacare repeal bill by March or April. | AP Photo Ryan: GOP will replace Obamacare, cut taxes and fund wall by August The House speaker lays out an ambitious agenda at a GOP retreat in Philadelphia.

PHILADELPHIA — House Speaker Paul Ryan on Wednesday outlined a packed legislative agenda for this year in which Republicans would repeal and replace Obamacare by April, fund Donald Trump’s border wall shortly after that and approve a sweeping tax reform package by August.

Ryan (R-Wis.) laid out the timetable at a Republican retreat here. Sources told POLITICO that he also dismissed suggestions that Congress would pass tax cuts that aren’t paid for — an apparent response to a POLITICO report Wednesday that some Trump administration officials were considering tax cuts without corresponding spending cuts revenue increases.


During the first major session of the gathering, Ryan pulled out a “Gantt chart,” like those used for construction projects. Ryan, a big fan of charts and wonky policy briefings, said he was inspired by Trump, a builder. It showed three horizontal lines of work the Senate, the House and the White House would complete over the course of the first 200 days of the Trump administration.

Ryan said he shared the chart with Trump, who gave both his approval and an assurance that he would use his bully pulpit to corral needed votes or blunt opposition. That prompted a standing ovation and cheers.

Up first on the to-do list, unsurprisingly, was repealing and replacing Obamacare. Ryan said he’d like to pass the fast-track repeal bill by March or April. He talked about three parts of the process: legislation passed by Congress; administrative actions to stabilize the insurance market, led by Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price, assuming he is confirmed; and any needed replacement legislation. The latter will need Democratic support to pass the Senate’s higher 60-vote threshold.

Capitol Hill would then turn to tax reform, which Ryan estimated would take from April through August, when lawmakers break for the summer. According to two sources in the room, Ryan said the tax package would be “revenue neutral,” essentially paying for itself and not adding to the deficit. He dismissed the idea of a major tax cut that's not paid for, one source said — comments that come as some Trump officials consider whether tax reform need not be offset by equivalent revenue increases or spending cuts.

Ryan also said tax reform would mean "lower rates, broader base, upset lobbyists," according to sources present.

Ryan said Congress would also pass an appropriations supplemental bill to bolster the border and national security. While he did not say mention a wall specifically, GOP leadership has been working on a plan to fund Trump's physical barrier or fence through the appropriations process.

Jake Sherman contributed to this report.