President Trump on Tuesday expressed confidence about making a future deal on healthcare after Republicans failed to shore up support last week for their plan to repeal and replace ObamaCare.
“I have some very special friends in the room. … Here we are and, shockingly, it’s bipartisan,” Trump joked during a White House reception for senators and their spouses on Tuesday evening, according to pool reports.
“A lot of people showed up. People we weren’t expecting. I know that we are all going to make a deal on healthcare. That’s such an easy one. I have no doubt that that’s going to happen very quickly. We have all been promising it — Democrat, Republican — to the public.”
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The president’s comments come after Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) last week pulled the GOP healthcare bill amid dwindling support among Republicans. Trump signaled he would move on to other legislative priorities, such as tax reform.
The president maintained Monday that Democrats would “make a deal with me on healthcare as soon as ObamaCare folds — not long.”
“Do not worry, we are in very good shape,” the president tweeted.
Tuesday’s event in the East Room of the White House was attended by dozens of senators, including Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Rand Paul (R-Ky.), who were critics of the GOP healthcare plan, and Senate Democratic Leader Charles Schumer (N.Y.), among others.
Members of Trump’s administration, including chief of staff Reince Priebus, White House press secretary Sean Spicer and top aide Kellyanne Conway, were also seen at the event.
“Nobody ever told me that politics was going to be so much fun,” Trump said during the event, before talking about the military, saying U.S. soldiers are “fighting like never before.”
Trump expressed hope that things could be done in a bipartisan manner.
“We are going to be doing a great job. Hopefully it will start being bipartisan because everybody really wants the same thing,” he said. “We want greatness for this country that we love. I think we are going to have some very good relationships.”