DEAD AGAIN : The GOP’s Latest Obamacare Repeal Bill Is Dead, .Graham-Cassidy Dies A Slow Death.... Republicans decided not to vote on the measure because they didn’t have enough support to pass it.

by Johnathan Cohn of Huffingtonpost 9/26/17 

Republican leaders have decided not to vote on Obamacare repeal legislation this week, effectively ending the party’s latest effort to wipe away the 2010 health care law.

When, and whether, they will try again remains to be seen. But for now a defining cause of the Republican Party, including President Donald Trump, lies in tatters.

Sponsors of  Graham-Cassidy Healthcare Bill

And at least for the moment, insurance coverage for many millions of Americans relying on Medicaid or the law’s federal subsidies remains intact. The decision came during a weekly caucus meeting on Capitol Hill, as leaders acknowledged that the the latest proposal, from Sens. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) and Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), lacked the 50 votes it required to pass. “We don’t have the votes,” Cassidy said afterwards.

Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) had announced her intention to vote against the measure on Tuesday, joining two of her colleagues, Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Rand Paul (R-Ky.). That left Republicans with just 49 votes, one short of the 50 they needed.

Mitch McConnell, Sen. Leader

And the clock was ticking, because special authority allowing Republicans to pass repeal with a simple majority, rather than the 60 votes it takes to overcome a filibuster, ends on September 30.

“We basically ran out of time,” Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), a co-sponsor of the bill, said.