UPDATE: Paul Ryan Says ‘We Just Didn’t Have the Votes’

4:24 p.m. EDT UPDATE: Speaker of the House Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) told reporters at the Capitol on Friday that the Republican Conference was disappointed and felt let down after failing to come up with the 216 votes needed to pass the American Health Care Act.

He said he notified President Donald Trump the votes wouldn’t be there, and they both agreed it would be best to pull the bill rather than have it go to a vote. Republicans will now need to reflect upon what happened and come up with something better.

“This comes down to a choice: are we all willing to give a little to do what is right?” he asked.

Ryan said the worst is yet to come with Obamacare, and that it’s so fundamentally flawed that it can’t possibly be propped up. He refused to “throw anyone under the bus” over the missed opportunity, but reinforced the obvious for Americans who have been battered by the Affordable Care Act.

“Obamacare is the law of the land, and it will remain the law of the land for the foreseeable future,” he said.

3:32 p.m. EDT UPDATE: The House of Representatives, after four hours of debate, has recessed subject to the call of the chair. Several media outlets are now reporting that the American Health Care Act has been pulled and no vote will take place.

C-SPAN, however, is reporting that the House Republican Caucus is meeting at this time, ostensibly to attempt one last effort at whipping the votes needed for passage. The Hill’s Whip List, however, suggests the votes still aren’t there.

Speaker of the House Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), whose leadership of the House GOP is at stake, has scheduled a press conference at the Capitol for 4 p.m. EDT.

11:22 a.m. EDT UPDATE: The House of Representatives has approved a measure to suspend their rules to immediately take up the American Health Care Act. Debate has now begun. Republicans and Democrats each have up to two hours of time allotted for debate.

A final vote on the bill should occur sometime around 2:30 p.m. EDT. According to The Hill‘s Whip List, 34 Republicans still oppose the bill, meaning it is likely to fail. Although President Donald Trump has stated he still supports Speaker of the House Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), it’s clear this vote could bring an abrupt end to his leadership of the House GOP—and could quickly lead to the dismissal of White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus.

7:14 a.m. EDT UPDATE: President Donald Trump has demanded that the House of Representatives vote on the American Health Care Act on Friday. According to Director of the Office of Management & Budget Mick Mulvaney, if the AHCA doesn’t pass on Friday, the president intends to “leave Obamacare in place.”

The House Rules Committee began meeting at 7 a.m. EDT to discuss the AHCA and to set up the rules for final debate. Several votes are planned throughout the day, including a vote on final passage.

After insisting for days that the votes to pass the American Health Care Act were there, Speaker of the House Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) was forced to cancel a floor vote on the GOP’s proposed legislation to begin repealing and replacing the Affordable Care Act.

RINOcare (Repeal In Name Only), as it has been named, proved just how malignant the cancer that is Obamacare has become for the nation’s health care system. And, despite numerous attempts to “sweeten the pot,” Ryan was unable to convince enough Republicans to vote for the legislation.

Many conservatives had been calling on the GOP leadership to retract the AHCA and “start over.” Thursday’s failure to pass the legislation may have provided just that opportunity. But it also exposed the problem the GOP will face going forward: It’s still not united behind a common agenda, despite Ryan’s best efforts to project that narrative.

The conservative House Freedom Caucus, in an effort to drive down premiums immediately, have demanded the elimination of Obamacare’s insurance regulations and the so-called “essential benefits” coverage requirements that include prescription drugs and maternity care. This became their non-negotiable position.

The president met with the Freedom Caucus members earlier in the day Thursday, but failed to get them all to come over to his side. According to the White House readout of the meeting:

President Donald J. Trump held a productive meeting with more than 30 members of the House Freedom Caucus in the Cabinet Room today to discuss the building momentum toward repealing and replacing Obamacare. Members of the House Freedom Caucus thanked the President for engaging with them throughout the negotiations. The president thanked the group for their willingness to work closely with the White House and their colleagues in Congress to craft the strongest possible bill. The group agreed that their ultimate goal is to implement a system that will drive down costs and increase access to healthcare for millions of Americans. This meeting was a positive step toward that goal. The president will also be meeting with the Tuesday Group later this afternoon and looks forward to further discussing our efforts to repeal and replace Obamacare.

But as Freedom Caucus members emerged from the meeting, it was clear they felt nothing new was being offered to get them to switch their votes. Still, Trump has made it clear he’s willing to negotiate with conservatives—something Ryan had refused to do as the bill was being crafted.

This could open the door for Sens. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and Ted Cruz (R-Texas) to bridge the gap and come up with a bill that will win widespread support from Republicans. Democrats have made it clear they are marching in lockstep in opposition to any efforts to repeal Obamacare. {eoa}