McConnell said Republicans would take steps to 'eliminate' the law's 'worst parts.” McConnell: Rapid repeal unlikely

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky conceded that a full repeal of the health care law won’t be possible in the short term but pledged that Republicans would use their new oversight powers in the House to keep pressure on the Obama administration and Democrats.

“We may not be able to bring about straight repeal in the next two years, and we may not win every vote against targeted provisions, even though we should have bipartisan support for some,” McConnell said during a Thursday speech at the Heritage Foundation. “But we can compel administration officials to attempt to defend this indefensible health spending bill and other costly, government-driven measures, like the stimulus and financial reform.”


Republicans, McConnell said, will continue to press for a complete repeal of the health care law while taking steps to “eliminate its worst parts.”

His remarks, two days after Republicans reclaimed the House and picked up seats in the Senate, were part of a broader speech outlining GOP efforts to “stop the liberal onslaught” under Democratic control, from additional stimulus bills to limited tax cuts for Americans.

A spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada blasted McConnell’s speech, warning that Republicans want to unravel the positive aspects of health reform.

“It speaks volumes that the first thing on Republicans' 'to do' list is to give power back to big health insurance companies,” Reid spokesman Jim Manley said. “What Sen. McConnell is really saying is, Republicans want to let insurance companies go back to denying coverage to people with pre-existing conditions, let them go back to charging women twice as much for the same coverage as men, and let them push millions of seniors back into the Medicare doughnut hole.”

But Republicans clearly feel no voter backlash from picking apart the unpopular health care law.

“When it comes to educating the public about the effects of Democrat legislation, we will fulfill our constitutional duty to oversee the executive branch through smart, aggressive oversight,” McConnell said. “We will scrutinize Democrat legislation and force them to defend it. And we will continue to make the case that the Democrats’ Big Government vision hinders freedom, prosperity and opportunity — and that while it may benefit some in the short term, it exposes everyone to calamity down the road.”

McConnell said Tuesday’s elections represented a report card for Democrats, and voters gave them an “F.”

“For the past two years, Democrat lawmakers chose to ignore the American people, so on Tuesday the American people chose new lawmakers. They held their elected representatives to account. And they demonstrated to all of us that constitutional conservatism is alive and well,” McConnell said.

“This isn’t a reason for Republicans to gloat; rather, it’s a time for both parties to realize who’s really in charge — the people — and to be grateful for the opportunity we now have to begin to turn this ship around. Tuesday was a referendum, not a choice. It was a report card on the administration and anyone who supported its agenda, plain and simple.”