President Donald Trump’s order for Christmas-night strikes on ISIS targets in Nigeria sent an unmistakable signal to terrorists targeting Christians around the world, Rep. Pete Sessions said on Newsmax Friday, calling the action part of a broader commitment to defend people persecuted for their faith.
"Well, I think the message is quite clear, and that is this president is going to begin a process to make sure that where there are Christians that are being killed, in particular, because just of their religion, that the president will take a look at that and where it warrants United States having action, he will take that action," the Texas Republican told Newsmax's "Wake Up America."
The conversation then shifted to domestic policy, as expanded Obamacare tax credits are set to expire in less than a week.
Asked what he is hearing from constituents and whether the issue could create problems for Republicans heading into next year’s midterms, Sessions said the political risk hinges on whether Republicans deliver an alternative.
"It is a problem if we fail to muster what I believe is our ability to have a Republican plan," Sessions said.
"The president has, I think, laid out a good tactical and technical process for us to follow, and that is that we need to be concerned about the 120 million Americans who do not receive employer-provided healthcare and do not receive any substantial tax or benefits either," he added.
Sessions said lawmakers and many working Americans already benefit from what he described as built-in subsidies through the tax treatment of employer-sponsored insurance, and he wants that advantage extended to people who buy coverage on their own.
"And so, as members of Congress, we all receive a subsidy," said Sessions. "Anyone who's on employer-provided healthcare receives a subsidy. And that's called pretax opportunities,” he said.
The Affordable Care Act reshaped the market because many people had few alternatives, Sessions added.
"If we extend this to all Americans, then it gives people who have been put on Obamacare because they have virtually no other opportunity because of the way Obamacare worked. It wiped out the insurance industry,” Sessions said.
But with the new plan, "they can have the same type of care, and it would be reasonably within our ability to not even have to go deep to pay for this, because today so many people are receiving the government subsidy and it increases at such a high rate.”
Sessions promoted what he called a "free market approach" through his "Health Care Fairness for All" proposal, which would provide tax credits to people without employer-provided insurance and let them choose their plan.
"This allows any person who is within the tax code, just like Obamacare, to be able to receive a tax credit if they do not have employer-provided healthcare," he said.
"This allows them to have literally a 50% model for them to receive this, what might be called a subsidy of 50%, a tax credit, that they can move to an insurance company or the insurance product of their choice and pay the other half," Sessions continued.
Sessions said the approach is meant to widen access and reduce the gap between employer coverage and Obamacare plans, including what he described as a payment disparity that can limit patient options.
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