Are Republicans ready to give up on repeal? Heres what might happen next. - By Paul Waldman

Senate Republicans are moving into high gear on their effort to repeal the Affordable Care Act, making it likely that within the next few weeks they’ll either pass something and keep the process hurtling forward, or abandon it altogether.

Judging from what they’re saying, it looks like the latter is the most likely scenario: They fail to pass their version of repeal, then say, “Well, we tried,” shake that albatross off their shoulders, and move on to the rest of their agenda. It would leave many in the party infuriated, but it might be the best of the bad options available to them.

The latest developments suggest Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) may be hoping to rip the Band-Aid off as quickly as possible and get this whole thing behind them. Here’s a report from Politico:

<After spending a month deliberating over a response to the House’s passage of a bill to repeal the law, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) is accelerating the party’s stagnant work as a jam-packed fall agenda confronts congressional leaders and President Donald Trump. Republican leaders want resolution to the tumultuous Obamacare repeal debate by the Fourth of July recess, Republican sources said, to ensure that the whole year isn’t consumed by health care and that the GOP leaves room to consider tax reform.

It’s a gut-check situation for Republicans, who are about to be confronted with tough choices that may result in millions fewer people with insurance coverage as a condition for cutting taxes and lowering some people’s premiums.>

While it’s possible that McConnell is pushing this accelerated schedule because he thinks it’ll produce a bill that passes before anyone has a chance to realize what’s happening, that seems like a long shot, particularly given how many Republicans are expressing doubts about whether they can get the 50 votes they need to pass it (the current GOP margin in the Senate is 52 to 48):

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https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/plum-line/wp/2017/06/06/are-republicans-ready-to-give-up-on-repeal-heres-what-might-happen-next/