House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) reinforced the Republican healthcare message Friday, accusing President Obama of making unfulfilled promises on his signature health reform law.
"The president had promised at the very beginning of this discussion that if people had healthcare they liked, they could keep it — well, we now know that's not the case. The president also said throughout the discussion, as did Nancy Pelosi and the Democrats, that this was not a tax … well, we now know what the court said, that it is a tax," said Cantor
on MSNBC's "Morning Joe."
"It's time to stop all the promises that are now broken, and let's get back the the kind of healthcare that people want," he added.
When pressed on whether people would really be forced to change their healthcare plans, Cantor said the cost of insurance will be so great that it will force people into government-controlled health plans.
"That's why we're saying we've got to to work to bring down costs, so healthcare can be more affordable and accessible for more people. That's where this entire process went awry. Is when the conversation switched from trying to control costs and it went totally to coverage," Cantor said.
Cantor told MSNBC that the system being put in place now won't be affordable and will limit patient choices.
Despite skepticism, he insisted that Congress will be able to repeal the law. Cantor announced Thursday that the House will vote on July 11 to repeal Obama’s healthcare law.
"If we can see a Republican victory in the Senate, the Congress, I am convinced will overturn the ObamaCare law through the reconciliation process with the 51-vote margin," he added.
Following Thursday's Supreme Court decision upholding the healthcare law, Republican lawmakers conceded that the only way to change the legislation is through Congress, rather than the courts, arguing that the November presidential election will be crucial in reversing the outcome of healthcare reform.
"He [Mitt Romney] has come out squarely opposed to the ObamaCare bill and has said he would support repeal of the bill, and that's what's important, because that's what's at stake now that the Supreme Court has decided on the law," Cantor said.
