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18 Photos Of Republicans Looking Ecstatic After The AHCA Vote

by Cate Carrejo
Mark Wilson/Getty Images News/Getty Images

The terrifying American Health Care Act (AHCA) took its first real step toward becoming law on Thursday when the latest version of the bill passed through the House of Representatives by a razor-thin margin of 217-213. While much of the country shared on social media their heartbreaking fears about how the bill could affect them, the GOP had a field day, taking delight in their opportunity to strip away health care from potentially millions of Americans. And these 18 photos of Republicans looking ecstatic about the AHCA show how detached they are from the consequences of their actions.

The full ramifications of the bill still aren't clear, in part because House Republicans pushed the bill through before the Congressional Budget Office was able to publish a report scoring its projected impact on the American economy. Assuming that up to 24 million Americans could lose their health care coverage due to inability to pay, as a CBO analysis of a previous version of the AHCA found, that potential devastation was certainly felt online as millions of tweets and posts poured in from people who are scared for their loved ones and themselves.

The only consolation is that the current Senate whip count means there's almost no way the legislation will pass. There are about four Republican senators who have effectively caucused with Democrats during the Trump presidency, and with only a two-seat majority, the AHCA's chance of getting through the Senate is small right now. However, if the bill does pass, there's exactly 18 months left until the 2018 midterm election, so you'd better get to work to take down the smug Republicans who are so happy about taking away people's right to live healthy lives.

1

Scootin' On His Way To Steal Your Insurance.

2

Dooming Millions Of Americans To Lives Of Illness And Poverty! Success!

3

I'd Love To Hear Exactly How That Big Win Works

5

Look At All These Happy White Men

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Of Course They're Applauding — This Bill Won't Affect Them

7

Just A Couple Of Rich Guys Saving Themselves Money

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I Guess That's As Close As Mitch McConnell Gets To A Smile

Win McNamee/Getty Images News/Getty Images

9

More Happy White Men

10

Can You Imagine Being This Self-Assured?

11

This Is The Less Exuberant Side Of The Press Conference

12

I Wonder If Over-Tanned Skin Is A Pre-Existing Condition?

13

Literally No One Wants This Bill, But They're Still Smiling About It

14

I Honestly Don't Understand How They View This As A Win

15

This Is Just As Sick As Millions Of Americans Are About To Be

16

California, Put Darrell Issa On Blast

17

Hopefully He's Already Rethinking It

18

Midterm Elections Are In 18 Months, Y'all

The AHCA is objectively not a win for the American people, only for a small portion of the country that can already afford health care. There's no reason for these lawmakers to look so delighted, and if you needed more convincing that they don't care about the average American — whose insurance premiums will now drastically increase or won't be able to afford coverage altogether — this is it.