The article discusses the political predicament faced by several Republican representatives, particularly those from swing districts, due to proposed Medicaid cuts. These cuts, part of a broader Republican budget resolution aimed at funding tax cuts, are set to significantly reduce Medicaid spending. This places representatives like Gabe Evans (CO) and Mariannette Miller-Meeks (IA), who won by slim margins in districts with high Medicaid enrollment, in a difficult position.
The main argument is that the proposed Medicaid cuts could harm the reelection chances of these Republican representatives, as they would be voting to cut a program that directly benefits a significant portion of their constituents. The small margins by which these representatives won their elections highlight their vulnerability to such a controversial decision. Democrats are actively using this situation to attack their Republican counterparts.
The article emphasizes the political risk these representatives face from supporting the proposed cuts, arguing that they could negatively impact their standing with their constituents.
Representative Gabe Evans, Republican of Colorado, secured his ticket to Washington in November when he defeated a Democratic member of Congress by less than 1 percentage point — just 2,449 votes.
Now Mr. Evans, 39, is helping to write legislation that could cement his own ticket back home.
The first-term congressman, whose swing district just north of Denver includes 151,749 Medicaid recipients, sits on the Energy and Commerce Committee. The Republican budget resolution that lays the groundwork for sweeping legislation to enact President Trump’s domestic agenda instructs the panel, which has jurisdiction over Medicaid, to slash spending by $880 billion over the next decade to help pay for a large tax cut. That number is impossible to reach without substantially reducing the cost of Medicaid, the government program that provides health insurance for lower-income Americans.
As Republicans in Congress struggle to coalesce around the core pieces of what Mr. Trump calls his “one big, beautiful bill,” Mr. Evans and other G.O.P. lawmakers from some of the most competitive districts in the country are facing committee votes next week to approve cuts to popular programs that could come back to haunt them politically.
And Democrats are gleeful at the prospect of Republican incumbents going on the record supporting the effort.
“These members of Congress won with fewer votes than the number of people in their district on Medicaid,” said Jesse Ferguson, a veteran Democratic strategist and a former spokesman for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. “Voting for this is like being the captain of the Titanic and deciding to intentionally hit the iceberg.”
The group includes Representative Mariannette Miller-Meeks, Republican of Iowa, who also sits on the Energy and Commerce Committee and is on even shakier ground than Mr. Evans, despite having warded off a challenger multiple times. Last year, Ms. Miller-Meeks, who represents 132,148 Medicaid recipients, won her seat by 0.2 percent, or 799 votes. Her local office in Davenport has been besieged by demonstrators concerned about spending cuts.
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