Rep. Tom Cotton (R., Ark.) blasted Senate Democrats for their refusal to enter the Obamacare exchanges without federal subsidies as written in the Affordable Care Act on MSNBC’s The Daily Rundown Thursday. Cotton cited the intent of the law, saying:
"It was clear the intent of the amendment. It was designed to ensure that Congress had to eat its own cookie, had to understand what it was like to live under the exchanges. Now that they have to go into the exchanges and they realize that the websites are not ready and there are no privacy protections and they have less access to doctors. Democrats in the Senate are refusing to take back the exemption that Obama gave them. They had a simple choice: they can keep the government open or keep the special deal. That's not right, Chuck."
When host Chuck Todd described Senators and staff as a "different type of carve out," the congressman maintained that Democratic senators were going against the language of the law they otherwise so vociferously defend.
"The law should be upheld as written. Obamacare was written to force all senators and congressmen and staff to go into the exchanges without any employer contribution," he said. "And, in fact, the Office of Personnel Management did not intend to make the contribution because it's clearly contrary to law. Only after Senate Democrats pleaded with President Obama in a closed door meeting did he personally intervene to correct the special deal for senators, congressmen, and staffers."