Sen. Cory Gardner — after years of symbolic votes against Obamacare — faces pivotal health care vote next week
Colorado Republican faces growing pressure from conservatives to make good on promise to repeal Obamacare
July 21, 2017
Sen. Cory Gardner, R-Colo., speaks during a May 16 press conference at the U.S. Capitol.
WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. Cory Gardner is under siege.
For weeks, protesters have rallied outside his offices in Washington and Colorado with the demand that he oppose Republican efforts to undo the Affordable Care Act. Several were arrested this week on Capitol Hill, joining more than a dozen activists who met a similar fate in Colorado.
Meanwhile, Gardner has faced growing pressure from conservatives to make good on his campaign promise to repeal Obamacare, a goal Gardner has supported with dozens of symbolic votes since he joined Congress in 2011. That force will be on display this weekend when thousands of activists descend on Denver for the Western Conservative Summit.
Gardner will be there, too, though he said in a phone interview with The Denver Post that health care won't be the main topic when he takes the stage Friday for a prime-time speech.
"What I usually do at this event is talk about those things that unite us as Americans," he said.
