A number of lawmakers admitted they didn’t actually read the health care bill approved by the House of Representatives on Thursday.
A clip from MSNBC, above, shared on social media by Judd Legum of Think Progress, shows members of Congress ignoring and avoiding cameras when asked if they actually read the bill they were about to vote on.
“I don’t think any individual has read the whole bill,” Rep. Thomas Garrett (R-Va.) told CNBC.
“I will fully admit, Wolf, I did not, but I can also assure you my staff did,” Rep. Chris Collins (R-N.Y.) told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer.
Rep Ted. Lieu (D-Calif.) responded on Twitter to Collins’ confession:
But not all Democrats read the bill, either. Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) told CNN he didn’t read it, but was briefed by his staff, according to Mediaite.
When the Affordable Care Act passed in 2009, then-Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) railed against Democrats for not reading it.
“Have you read the bill? Have you read the reconciliation bill?” Boehner said, according to The Washington Post. “Have you read the manager’s amendment? Hell no you haven’t!”
Current Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) once said House members shouldn’t vote for legislation they haven’t read.
“I don’t think we should pass bills that we haven’t read that we don’t know what they cost,” Ryan said in 2009.
The GOP health care bill, a repeal of Obamacare, passed the House 217-213, with no Democratic votes.
