It took until the wee hours of the morning, but members of Senate voted against a “Skinny Repeal” amendment that would have stripped the Affordable Care act of much of its power. The bill failed by a 49-51 vote.
The vote took place at around 1:30 a.m. EST on Friday, and in a dramatic moment, Senator John McCain was the deciding vote.
McCain, who made a return to Senate just one week after having brain surgery to remove a cancerous tumor, was one of the deciding votes. He voted “no” on the bill and did so by giving a firm thumbs down.
McCain comes to the front, loudly says “NO” then walks off:
The vote means that the “Skinny Repeal” is now dead, and it’s back to the drawing board for the GOP members of Senate.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell gave a speech following the vote and said he will pull the bill.
“This is clearly a disappointing moment,” McConnell said. “From skyrocketing costs to plummeting choices and collapsing markets, our constituents have suffered through an awful lot with Obamacare. We thought they deserved better, it’s why I and many of my colleagues did as we promised and voted to repeal this failed law.”
The “Skinny Repeal” legislation was finally unveiled by Senate Republicans around 10 p.m. EDT Thursday, and it would have repealed the individual and employer mandates of the Affordable Care Act. It would’ve also temporarily repealed the medical device tax, CNN reported. In addition, it would also give each state a bit more flexibility in allowing health insurance that doesn’t comply with the language in Obamacare.
However, the “Skinny Repeal” bill would also add another 16 million uninsured people by 2026 under Obamacare, a report released by the Congressional Budget Office said.
Here’s how members of Senate voted on the “Skinny Repeal” bill:
NO (51 VOTES)
John McCain (R-AZ)
Lisa Murkowski (R-AK)
Susan Collins (R-ME)
Tammy Baldwin (D-WI)
Michael Bennet (D-CO)
Richard Bluementhal (D-CT)
Cory Booker (D-NJ)
Sherrod Brown (D-OH)
Maria Cantwell (D-WA)
Ben Cardin (D-MD)
Thomas Carper (D-DE)
Robert P. Casey Jr. (D-PA)
Christopher Coons (D-DE)
Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV)
Joe Donnelly (D-IN)
Tammy Duckworth (D-IL)
Richard Durbin (D-IL)
Dianne Feinstein (D-CA)
Al Franken (D-MN)
Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY)
Kamala Harris (D-CA)
Maggie Hassan (D-NH)
Martin Heinrich (D-NM)
Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND)
Mazie Hirono (D-HI)
Timothy Kaine (D-VA)
Angus King (I-ME)
Amy Klobuchar (D-MN)
Patrick Leahy (D-VT)
Joe Manchin III (D-WV)
Edward Markey (D-MA)
Claire McCaskill (D-MO)
Robert Menendez (D-NJ)
Jeff Merkley (D-OR)
Chris Murphy (D-CT)
Patty Murray (D-WA)
Bill Nelson (D-FL)
Gary Peters (D-MI)
Jack Reed (D-RI)
Bernie Sanders (I-VT)
Brian Schatz (D-HI)
Charles Schumer (D-NY)
Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH)
Debbie Stabenow (D-MI)
Jon Tester (D-MT)
Tom Udall (D-NM)
Chris Van Hollen (D-MD)
Mark Warner (D-VA)
Elizabeth Warren (D-MA)
Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI)
Ron Wyden (D-OR)
YES (49 VOTES)
Richard Shelby (R-AL)
Luther Strange (R-AL)
Dan Sullivan (R-AK)
Jeff Flake (R-AZ)
John Boozman (R-AR)
Tom Cotton (R-AR)
Cory Gardner (R-CO)
Marco Rubio (R-FL)
Johnny Isakson (R-GA)
David Perdue (R-GA)
Mike Crapo (R-ID)
Jim Risch (R-ID)
Todd Young (R-IN)
Chuck Grassley (R-IA)
Joni Ernst (R-IA)
Pat Roberts (R-KS)
Jerry Moran (R-KS)
Mitch McConnell (R-KY)
Rand Paul (R-KY)
Bill Cassidy (R-LA)
John N. Kennedy (R-LA)
Thad Cochran (R-MS)
Roger Wicker (R-MS)
Roy Blunt (R-MO)
Steve Daines (R-MT)
Deb Fischer (R-NE)
Ben Sasse (R-NE)
Dean Heller (R-NV)
Richard Burr (R-NC)
Thom Tillis (R-NC)
John Hoeven (R-ND)
Rob Portman (R-OH)
Jim Inhofe (R-OK)
Jame Lankford (R-OK)
Pat Toomey (R-PA)
Lindsey Graham (R-SC)
Tim Scott (R-SC)
John Thune (R-SD)
Mike Rounds (R-SD)
Lamar Alexander (R-TN)
Bob Corker (R-TN)
John Cornyn (R-TX)
Ted Cruz (R-TX)
Orrin Hatch (R-UT)
Mike Lee (R-UT)
Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV)
Ron Johnson (R-WI)
Mike Enzi (R-WY)
John Barrasso (R-WY)
