High stakes for Trump on healthcare vote

High stakes for Trump on healthcare vote:

Anthony ZurcherNorth America reporter

It's time for Donald Trump, the man who bills himself as the consummate dealmaker, to flex his negotiating muscle - or else.

The American Healthcare Act, which rolls back portions of the Obamacare health-insurance reforms, is scheduled for a vote in the House of Representatives on Friday. The bill was initially scheduled to go before the House on Thursday, but was delayed amid concerns it would not garner enough votes.

Even with the delay, it remains far from certain that there are the 215 votes necessary for passage. According to the latest Associated Press news agency tally, at least 28 Republicans are opposed. Assuming all the Democratic lawmakers present stick together - which seems fairly certain at this point - it would only take 23 Republican defections to sink the bill.

The embattled president issued increasingly serious warnings to the Republican holdouts - telling them on Tuesday that their congressional majorities were in peril if the bill were voted down, then on Thursday that he would abandon healthcare reform if they did not pass his bill - leaving them stuck with Obamacare for good.

At one point he singled out Congressman Mark Meadows, leader of the recalcitrant group of libertarian-leaning conservative congressmen known as the Freedom Caucus, telling him: "I'm going to come after you, but I know I won't have to, because I know you'll vote Yes."

Press Secretary Sean Spicer would later say that Mr Trump meant that as a joke, but in politics a joke is often a threat delivered with a smile. Mr Meadows, by the way, is still a solid No.

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