Kimmel Enjoys 'Emotional Weekend' After Likely Death Of Obamacare Repeal Bill
Jimmy Kimmel took great delight Monday in celebrating the almost certain death of a Senate bill meant to repeal the Affordable Care Act.
The late-night talk show host said “common sense and decency” had prevailed on Friday when Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) “rode in and pulled a Red Wedding” on the legislation co-sponsored by Sens. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) and Lindsay Graham (R-S.C.).
Millions of people would be left without insurance coverage if the measure, which would force states to cut programs, passes, per the Congressional Budget Office.
And for Kimmel, whose baby son’s congenital heart defects inspired him to launch a personal crusade against the bill, it was “amazing news.”
“I had an emotional weekend, for sure” said the comedian, who last week dedicated large chunks of his shows to rallying against the measure. Around 200 strangers in three cities he’d visited told him how Obamacare had “saved or drastically improved” the lives of them or family members, he said.
Kimmel also thanked Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), who announced Monday that she would also vote against the bill. And he had this message for people who’d claimed he was just being a “mouthpiece” for the Democrats:
“I think I need to come clean. Here’s what happened: So my wife and I were worried about health care. We didn’t like what the Republicans were doing, so we decided to have a baby with congenital heart defects. OK. And then once we had that going for us, I went on TV, I spoke out and we may have stopped Cassidy-Graham. I still can’t believe we pulled it off, but we did. It’s amazing, isn’t it?”
The “best news,” however, was that the comedian could now “go back to talking about the Kardashians” on his show.
“Guys, Kylie’s pregnant,” he jokingly added.
Check out the full segment above.
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This article originally appeared on HuffPost.
