House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy: House to vote on repealing Obamacare to return healthcare decisions back to the people

 House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy gives us his weekly view from Capitol Hill. In his words:

 "Super Bowl weekend is an exciting time for everyone, even if the Chargers, 49ers, Raiders, or whoever your favorite team is won’t be taking the field. But in our community, the big game has even

greater significance this year. For the Boron High School football team, they are experiencing the trip of a lifetime. After entering (and winning!) the NFL’s Together We Make Football contest, they won a trip to Arizona and tickets to Sunday’s game. We are so proud of the Boron community for pulling the support together and showing the country the ‘pride’ of Kern County.

 "But before we settle in to watch the Seahawks face the Patriots, it was a week of flurried activity in Washington (literally and figuratively).

 "The House has started the 114th Congress off to a fast start. In the opening weeks, our goal is to pass dozens of important bills that were approved by the House last Congress but were held up by the Democrat-led Senate. This includes the Hire More Heroes Act, which helps small businesses grow and veterans get jobs. It includes the Keystone pipeline and other legislation that upgrades our energy infrastructure. We passed legislation that redefines full time as 40 hours, after Obamacare lowered it to 30. And we also passed the Clay Hunt Suicide Prevention Act, legislation that will reform the VA by improving veterans’ access to mental health care resources, helping ensure veterans get the help they need after serving and protecting our country. These bills all passed out of the House with bipartisan support, and some have even passed out of the Senate.

  "Unfortunately, the President’s response hasn’t always been supportive of these measures as he has threatened more vetoes this quickly than any President since they became a formal practice.

 "Despite the resounding message by voters last November to hold Washington accountable and get some things accomplished, the President has ‘veered left’ and does not appear to be willing to work with Republicans in Congress. But the House of Representatives is intimately tied to the will of the people. We talk with our constituents every day, and when we are in our district, we listen to our constituents in meetings, in the grocery store, at the gas station, and in our houses of worship. The House has committed that the priorities we hear will indeed be the priorities of the House.

  "Next week, the House will vote to repeal Obamacare which has increased costs and reduced coverage for health care. Pulling this bill from its roots is an important first step to returning the health care decisions back to the families making them. And at the same time I have instructed the committee chairmen of the Energy and Commerce, Education and Workforce, and Ways and Means Committee’s to develop patient-centered solutions to replace Obamacare. Ours will put individuals and families in the driver’s seat and use the principles of choice and competition to make high-quality health care more affordable and accessible for all.