Roskam moves from one hot seat to another
Greg Hinz
Peter Roskam
It's out of the frying pan and into the fire for a local congressman, Wheaton Republican Peter Roskam.
Having just played a key role in passing the GOP tax bill as chairman of the House Ways & Means Committee's Subcommittee on Tax Policy, Roskam is moving on to head a different panel that's at the center of continuing efforts to replace or revamp Obamacare. Roskam will remain on tax policy, but his priority will be the new gig as chairman of the Subcommittee on Health, whose jurisdiction includes Medicare and tax provisions that affect health insurance. The change was announced today.
"Our health care system has been broken for many years, and it's important that we get this right," Roskam said in a statement. "I'm focused on the needs of our families and what changes we can make that will protect the vulnerable, keep health insurance affordable and put American families back in control of their own health care."
Roskam voted for the Obamacare-repeal plan that passed the House but fell short in the Senate. On the Health panel, he'll succeed Ohio Rep. Pat Tiberi, who is leaving Congress to take a private-sector job.
The new post certainly is a sign that Roskam has earned some chits with House Speaker Paul Ryan. But it raises the ante even higher as Democrats gear up for an all-out effort to unseat him this fall.
With not only tax reform but health care hot topics in Roskam's 6th District, look for the race to attract enormous amounts of spending from all sides.
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