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From the start, most Republicans were dead-set against the Medicaid expansion under ObamaCare. More than that, they oppose the program in its current form. “A Better Way,” the 2016 House Republican platform drafted under Speaker Ryan’s leadership, denounced Medicaid as fiscally unsustainable and advocated turning it over to the states as either a block grant or a per capita allotment. It is no surprise that the current Republican bill does just this. Nor should it come as a surprise to anyone that it would lead to a substantial reduction in Medicaid enrollment. This outcome is not a bug in the Republican program; it is a feature. (William Galston, 3/14)

As the saying goes, “It’s tough to make predictions, especially about the future.” But that hasn’t stopped the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) from trying. The CBO has forecast the effects of the House Republicans’ health care reform plan, the American Health Care Act (AHCA), which will repeal and replace much of President Barack Obama’s 2010 Affordable Care Act. (Joel Zinberg, 3/16)

Maybe in politics, genes really are destiny. Under pressure from a CBO “score,” the genetic disposition of Republican politicians is to go wobbly. The disposition of movement conservatives is to get out the long knives and start carving up other conservatives. The result will be guaranteed political defeat for years if congressional Republicans choke at the chance to repeal and replace ObamaCare. (Daniel Henninger, 3/15)

Three of Virginia’s GOP congressmen have expressed opposition to or skepticism about the House leadership’s plan to replace Obamacare — and the other four are uncommitted. Not an auspicious start for the bill. Although Republicans spoke for years of health care reform, they did not grow serious until Obamacare’s enactment. (3/15)