In response to Donald Trump’s desperate efforts to cover for his deeply unpopular anti-health care agenda, DNC Rapid Response Director Alex Floyd released the following statement: 

“Facts aren’t the Trump-Vance ticket’s strong suit, but the reality is that Donald Trump already tried (and failed) to ‘terminate’ and ‘totally kill’ the Affordable Care Act the last time he was in office – and just two weeks ago his running mate JD Vance confirmed that repealing the ACA would be a ‘priority’ for a second Trump term. The truth is that Trump and Vance are hellbent on pushing an extreme Project 2025 agenda to rip away health care access from millions of Americans. The future of affordable health care is on the ballot this November – and Vice President Harris and Governor Walz are the only ticket that will save the ACA and its critical protections for Americans with preexisting conditions.”

FACT CHECK: Just two weeks ago, JD Vance “suggested repealing Obamacare would still be a priority” for the Trump-Vance ticket.

NOTUS: “Vance suggested repealing Obamacare would still be a priority.

[…]

“Vance said the ‘repeal and replace efforts’ during Trump’s presidency were ‘fundamentally focused around the idea of fixing what was broken, not about stripping people’s health care away. So yeah, I think you’re certainly gonna see efforts to reform the system. Obviously, what that looks like will depend a little bit on Congress because Congress has to have a role to play.’”

Vance has previously criticized the Affordable Care Act, which Trump is pushing to “terminate.”

Vance: “… health care costs too much. And it is also true that Obamacare has failed to take care of this problem.”

Trump: “We had a couple of Republican Senators who campaigned for 6 years against [the Affordable Care Act], and then raised their hands not to terminate it. It was a low point for the Republican Party, but we should never give up!”

Trump led efforts to repeal the ACA as president and spent years railing against affordable health care.

NBC News: “Trump approved a surprise decision to push for the complete elimination of the Affordable Care Act in the courts. If it succeeds, millions of Americans will lose their private insurance or Medicaid coverage and the health care system would be thrown into chaos.”

NPR: “The very day President Trump was sworn in — Jan. 20, 2017 — he signed an executive order instructing administration officials ‘to waive, defer, grant exemptions from, or delay’ implementing parts of the Affordable Care Act, while Congress got ready to repeal and replace President Obama’s signature health law.” 

Daily Beast: “Trump Revives Plan to Dismantle Obamacare if Elected in 2024”

Associated Press: “Trump says he will renew efforts to replace ‘Obamacare’ if he wins a second term”

Trump: “Obamacare is a disaster. And I said, ‘We’re gonna do something about it.’”

Mediaite: “‘OBAMACARE SUCKS!!!’ Trump Rants About New Plan — Years After He Promised It Was ‘Two Weeks’ Away”

When he was in office, Trump came up just one vote short in Congress from achieving his goal of repealing the Affordable Care Act.

The Hill: “On the campaign trail, Trump has doubled down on his promise to repeal the ACA, a feat he fell one vote short of in 2017.”

Trump: “I will get health care. I’m one vote short of health care. I’ll get health care.”

Reuters: “The most previous attempt to repeal Obamacare fell one vote short in July, in a humiliating setback for Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.”

If the Trump-Vance ticket gets its way, over 100 million Americans with preexisting conditions could lose critical protections — opening the door for insurance companies to deny them coverage.

Spectrum News: “The ACA protects more than 100 million people with preexisting conditions from being denied care, plus it requires insurance plans to cover things like preventive care and limit out-of-pocket costs.”

KFF Poll: “Majorities of Democrats [88%], Republicans [62%], and independents [73%] say it is ‘very important’ to continue each of [the Affordable Care Act’s] protections for people with pre-existing conditions.”

Repealing the Affordable Care Act is highly unpopular and would be devastating for millions of hardworking Americans.

Jon Favreau: “If Trump wins, 40 million people could lose their health care, and insurance companies would get to deny coverage to people with pre-existing conditions. If Biden wins, that…won’t happen.”

KFF Poll: 64% believe it is “very important” insurance companies continue to be prohibited from charging sick people more – including 55% of Republicans. 

NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist Poll: “Thirteen years after the Affordable Care Act was signed into law, more than eight in ten Americans (83%) either agree or strongly agree that all Americans have a basic right to healthcare coverage.”

Bryan Bennett: “Per our October @NavigatorSurvey research, repealing the ACA (and January 6) remain the top concerns about Trump’s first term as president”

Washington Post: “But what’s clear is that an effort to ‘terminate’ Obamacare is not something Americans are pining for. Not only were the GOP’s efforts to repeal and replace Obamacare during Trump’s term historically unpopular, but the law also appears to have gotten more popular since then. … And when politicians talk of ending health insurance for tens of millions of Americans, dropping coverage of preexisting conditions and cutting Obamacare’s Medicaid funding, things get even dicier.”