El-Sayed Says Trump Could Put His Name on Medicare for All

Hasan asked El-Sayed whether he shared Sen. Bernie Sanders’ doubts about Trump signing a Medicare for All bill passed by Democratic majorities in the House and Senate. El-Sayed replied that Trump “seems to like to put his name on things” and invited him to claim credit for covering everyone. “I just want people to have healthcare,” he said.

Sanders, an independent senator from Vermont, had discussed the issue Thursday on MS-NOW with Chris Hayes. After Hayes called the odds of Trump signing such a bill “pretty small,” Sanders argued that Congress should pass it regardless. Trump could veto the legislation, he said, but Republicans would then have to decide whether to sustain the veto, with voters watching.

Sanders also said he was not certain Trump would reject the bill, reasoning that the president might see political benefit in addressing a system widely viewed as broken. The source article says polls show Medicare for All is popular among Democrats, independents and growing numbers of people identifying as Republican or conservative. It describes the proposal as covering everyone at lower overall cost than the current system, which is dominated by for-profit insurers.

Hasan called El-Sayed’s suggested renaming a “good move,” though he joked he would find it difficult to invoke Trump’s name when seeking medical care. Some social media users also backed the idea, arguing that the name should not matter if the plan became law.