Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said that Republican senators should study the House bill now "because I hope to call it up when we receive it from the House." | AP Photo Senate GOP poised to jam through Obamacare repeal Mitch McConnell warns his members that there may not be extensive debate or input.

Senate Republican leaders said Tuesday that they're planning to jam through legislation to repeal and replace Obamacare if and when it passes the House — warning there may be no drawn out debate or extensive input from lawmakers.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said that Republican senators should study the House bill now "because I hope to call it up when we receive it from the House." That could take place within the month if House Speaker Paul Ryan is able shepherd the legislation through his chamber — a big if considering the conservative backlash against it since it was released late Monday.


Though President Donald Trump said in a tweet Tuesday that the House Republican bill is "out for review and negotiation," McConnell offered a different take. He noted that the measure is backed by the White House and is the result of "a long conversation with many voices."

"It's supported by the one person who can actually sign a bill into law — the president of the United States," McConnell said.

It was a none-too-subtle notice from the Senate leader that he is determined to act forcefully and quickly — and not allow the repeal effort to drag out for months, preventing the chamber from moving on to other big-ticket items.

McConnell's comment came as Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said Tuesday that the GOP may need to "slow down" on repealing the Democratic health care law, to better understand the changes and give the public time to absorb them.

But for GOP leaders, it's apparently full steam ahead. The replacement bill would scrap Obamacare's Medicaid expansion and replace insurance subsidies with tax credits — elements that are drawing criticism from both the centrist and conservative wings of the GOP, who argue either that too many people would lose insurance or that it's a warmed over version of Obamacare.

But McConnell's chief deputy, Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), suggested that the House's bill is close to a finished product and that he doesn't expect the Senate to significantly alter it.

"The Senate always has the option to change what the House has done, but this bill is one that was produced in consultation between the House and Senate. We've been working very closely ... also with the White House and [HHS Secretary] Price," Cornyn said. Asked if he expect major changes to a House-passed bill in the Senate, he said: "I don't."

However, because of the Senate's unique rules, the GOP's attempts to pass the bill on a party-line vote would prompt a "vote-a-rama" of unlimited amendments from both parties that could alter the bill. Republican leaders could conceivably beat back any proposed amendments by whipping their members to protect the House legislation.

A McConnell spokesman said that the Senate leader "hasn't announced floor procedure yet" for the legislation when asked if there would be hearings before the Senate takes it up. But the mere suggestion that a Republican-controlled Congress would ram through major legislation with minimal hearings or public debate is not likely to go over well with some rank-and-file members.

“This is exactly the type of back-room dealing and rushed process that we criticized Democrats for, and it is not what we promised the American people," said Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah). "Let’s fulfill our Obamacare repeal promise immediately and then take our time and do reform right."

GOP leaders have a soft deadline to repealing the law by the Easter recess in mid-April. They're concerned about going into that break period with the Obamacare debate unresolved, giving protesters a chance to storm town hall meetings, Republican sources said. But Graham said the party should be less concerned with the timeline and more concerned with getting it right.

"I've always been concerned that the public needs to absorb this. We're not going to be judged by when we did it but how we did it," Graham told reporters. He said going too quickly "is a risk we're going to take if we don't slow down here a little bit."

GOP leaders are betting their skeptical members will vote for their repeal plan when confronted with a vote to scrap a law they've campaigned against for years. But Graham said he will not be in the "take-it-or-leave-it mode."

"I'm not worried about the recess. I'm worried about doing it right. I've seen one process that produced Obamacare, where you vote on it on Christmas Eve. I don't feel a need for speed," Graham said.

He said it's too early for him to take a position on the House bill, but that the Senate should have a chance to amend whatever the House passes.