WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - After another contentious year on Capitol Hill, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ken., has indicated he would like to see more bipartisanship in Washington in the new year.
'This has not been a very bipartisan year,' McConnell said in an interview with NPR on Thursday. 'I hope in the new year, we're going to pivot here and become more cooperative.'
McConnell suggested that the bipartisan approach would include a shift away from repeated efforts to repeal and replace Obamacare.
Noting that Republicans will have an even smaller majority in the Senate after Democratic Senator-elect Doug Jones of Alabama is seated, McConnell said the GOP will 'probably move on to other issues.'
McConnell argued the repeal of the individual mandate as part of the tax reform bill 'takes the heart out of Obamacare' and indicated he wants to focus instead on stabilizing the insurance markets.
However, other Republicans such as Senator Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., have pledged to move forward with efforts to repeal and replace Obamacare.
'To those who believe - including Senate Republican leadership - that in 2018 there will not be another effort to Repeal and Replace Obamacare -- well you are sadly mistaken,' Graham said.
'By eliminating the individual mandate in the tax bill we have pulled one of the pillars of Obamacare out,' he added. 'But by no means has Obamacare been repealed or replaced.'
Graham indicated he would continue to push for a bill repealing and replacing Obamacare by block-granting money back to the states.
Some Republicans may also be upset with McConnell for breaking with House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., over the idea of using the reconciliation process to enact welfare and entitlement reform.
McConnell told NPR he believes changes to entitlement programs like Medicaid and food stamps almost always have to be bipartisan in order to be sustained.
'The House may have a different agenda,' McConnell said. 'If our Democratic friends in the Senate want to join us to tackle any kind of entitlement reform, I'd be happy to take a look at it.'
In a post to Twitter on Friday, President Donald Trump suggested he would also like to see more bipartisanship going forward.
'At some point, and for the good of the country, I predict we will start working with the Democrats in a Bipartisan fashion,' Trump tweeted.
He added, 'Infrastructure would be a perfect place to start. After having foolishly spent $7 trillion in the Middle East, it is time to start rebuilding our country!'
(Photo: Gage Skidmore)
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