WASHINGTON _ President Donald Trump said he was "disappointed" to lose his latest attempt to rewrite President Barack Obama's health care law and went into immediate damage control.
"Let Obamacare fail, it will be a lot easier," he told reporters during a brief public appearance with Vice President Mike Pence and others at the White House on Tuesday.
He insisted that Republicans would not face voter wrath if they simply do nothing.
"We're not going to own it. I'm not going to own it," he said. "I can tell you the Republicans are not going to own it. We'll let Obamacare fail and then the Democrats are going to come to us."
The comments are in line with others Trump has made between intermittent attempts to overhaul the law, a key campaign promise for him and other members of his party. Trump has faced criticism for his lack of engagement in negotiations and selling attempts to pass a replacement.
Trump's comments were the first since Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., announced late Monday that he was dropping the latest rewrite effort amid growing opposition from fellow Republicans. McConnell immediately switched plans, announcing he would seek to repeal the law without a replacement. But that idea also quickly died after centrist senators rejected it.
