President Donald Trump is set to deliver a statement on health care at 3:15 p.m. ET.
Trump's statement will follow his participation "in a greeting with victims of Obamacare," the White House said in a news release.
The president commented on the Republicans' attempt to change the U.S. health care system in a Sunday Twitter post:
https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/889274373689028609
Last week, the GOP's effort to simply repeal Obamacare appeared to collapse after multiple Republican senators said they would not support the move.
That setback followed the replacement plan hitting a roadblock in the Senate.
Republicans hold 52 seats in the Senate, and passing a plan under budget reconciliation rules requires 50 votes, with Vice President Mike Pence breaking a tie. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) is away from the Senate recovering from surgery, so losing two votes or more will stall a Republican plan for now.
Small-business owners are launching a nationwide blitz with former House Speaker Newt Gingrich to pressure Congress to pivot to tax relief after a frustrating summer of health care gridlock.
The group is armed with a survey showing that small-business owners want tax relief more urgently than a repeal of Obamacare, so that they can reinvest in their companies or pay down debt.
According to The Hill, a lobbying coalition led by Job Creators Network (JCN), FreedomWorks, and the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) are planning to barnstorm the country in August.
Their goal is to force a pivot from health care legislation and to narrow ambitions from the complete tax code overhaul that has been favored by Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.).
Donald Trump Jr. and Paul Manafort have each cut a deal with the Senate Judiciary Committee and agreed to negotiate with committee members to provide documents "and be interviewed... prior to a public hearing" in regards to its Russia probe, according to statement from the office of committee Chairman Chuck Grassley.
Representatives for both Trump Jr. and Manafort did not respond to requests for comment from ABC, but previously said they are cooperating with the congressional investigations.
The announcement comes a day after senators threatened to subpoena the pair in pursuit of their investigation into Russian election interference. Both Grassley (R-Iowa) and committee ranking member Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) expressed confidence Thursday in achieving cooperation with the president's son and former campaign chair.
“I’m not concerned, because if they don’t they will be subpoenaed," said Feinstein.
On Wednesday, the committee invited the men -- who have come under scrutiny for their attendance at a June 2016 meeting at Trump Tower in which Trump Jr. believed they would receive incriminating information about Hillary Clinton -- to appear at a hearing next week and turn over documents related to their contacts with Russian nationals. They will not appear at Wednesday's session in light of their willingness to cooperate, according to an aide to Feinstein.
