A longtime refrain, promise and rallying cry is gone.
In 2012, right in the middle of his convention speech, Mitt Romney declared Obamacare repeal a crucial priority. It was part of his five-part plan for a “better future.” “We must rein in the skyrocketing cost of health care by repealing and replacing Obamacare,” he said. Four years later, there was little doubt that Donald J. Trump would also mention the health law: “We will repeal and replace disastrous Obamacare!” he declared to roaring applause. This week, Mr. Trump didn’t mention Obamacare at all in his convention speech. The word that rallied Republican voters for nearly a decade has barely been uttered. It came up precisely once during the convention, during a speech by Natalie Harp, a cancer survivor who is not an elected official. In the 2012 and 2016 G. O. P. conventions, repealing Obamacare was a central, almost obligatory part of every political speech, a goal shared by every candidate, a priority of almost every Republican voter. The term Obamacare, originally conceived by Republicans to diminish its popularity, has been used less often among Democratic politicians, though President Obama himself ultimately embraced it. Republicans used the term Obamacare 23 times in 2012 and 13 times in 2016, during the prime-time evening hours (transcripts show no mentions of the Affordable Care Act at the 2012,2016 or 2020 conventions). Speakers usually referred to it in calls for repeal. This year, there were no calls for repeal, just a claim from Ms.
