Trump Dealt Major Healthcare Blow

U.S President Donald Trump has suffered a major setback after being unable to repeal Obamacare.

The beleaguered president has tried and failed to repeal the Affordable Care Act since taking office at the end of last year.

Replacing Obamacare was one of Trump’s key pledge’s in his successful run for the White House.

On Monday, Senator John McCain returned to the senate after suffering health issues and being diagnosed with brain cancer, to vote in support of Trump. McCain voted with 49 other Republican senators on Monday to continue the debate regarding the repeal of Obama’s healthcare legislation.

But in an astonishing turnaround, McCain was one of the Republican senators who voted against Trump in the two repeal votes this week.

On Wednesday, the Senate voted down the bill that would have repealed Obamacare, without a replacement healthcare bill. The vote was 45-55, with seven Republicans voting against the bill, along with all Democrats.

Last night, the Senate sounded the death knell on Trump’s attempts at healthcare overhaul. In a vote to repeal only sections of Obamacare, dubbed a “skinny repeal”, the Senate narrowly voted against Trump, with three Republicans voting with the Democrats to kill the repeal.

The president has lashed out against those in his party who voted against him. On Wednesday the Trump administration threatened to isolate Alaska after Senator Lisa Murkowski voted to save Obamacare, in both votes.

Using one of his favourite mediums of communication, Trump posted on Twitter: “3 Republicans and 48 Democrats let the American people down. As I said from the beginning, let Obamacare implode, then deal. Watch!”

According to experts, an estimated 20 million people would lose their health insurance if Obamacare were to be repealed.

Senator John McCain, when asked why he voted against the repeal, has said, “I thought it was the right thing to do.”