Sen. Rand Paul's tweets came after President Donald Trump singled him out when seeking to pressure GOP lawmakers via Twitter on Friday morning to back the bill. | Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Rand Paul to Trump: 'I won't be bribed or bullied' into supporting Graham-Cassidy bill

Rand Paul, a definitive “no” on Senate Republicans’ last-ditch effort to repeal and replace Obamacare, “won’t be bribed or bullied” into supporting the bill, the Kentucky Republican said Friday.

“Calling a bill that KEEPS most of Obamacare ‘repeal’ doesn't make it true. That’s what the swamp does,” Paul tweeted. “I won't be bribed or bullied.”


Paul's tweets came after President Donald Trump singled him out in seeking to pressure GOP lawmakers via Twitter on Friday morning to back the bill.

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

Paul responded in kind, tweeting that “no one is more opposed to Obamacare than I am” but asserting, “The current bill isn’t repeal.”

“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 said.

Republicans have begun to rally behind legislation sponsored by Sens. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Bill Cassidy of Louisiana that would block-grant federal health care funding to the states.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) is expected to bring the bill to the floor next week for a vote ahead of a crucial Sept. 30 deadline that will allow Republicans to pass the measure by a simple majority. It’s unclear, though, whether the legislation has the votes to pass.

