Republican senators have been unable to escape the healthcare debate amid Congress' Fourth of July recess, according to multiple media accounts.
However, very few Republican senators made public appearances this Independence Day. Just four of 52 Republican senators attended Fourth of July parades in their states and only three have town hall meetings scheduled for the recess, according to The Washington Post. This is by design, The Post reports, as many senators want to minimize images of activists protesting the GOP healthcare bill. Some senators are hosting call-in forums instead, according to the report.
Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, attended a parade in a small town of 1,331 people. She said people were wholly focused on healthcare, according to reports from The Washington Post and The New York Times. Sen. Collins, who opposes the current GOP healthcare bill, said she received support from constituents for her stance against the bill. Sen. Dean Heller, R-Nev., who attended a parade in Ely, Nev., said his constituents urged him to vote for the Republican bill, according to The Washington Post. Mr. Heller opposes the current version of the bill, but would potentially support a revision.
Sens. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, also attended parades. Republican Sens. Cruz, Jerry Moran of Kansas and Bill Cassidy of Louisiana scheduled town hall meetings for the recess, according to the report.
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