Former Alaska governor and GOP vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin announced Tuesday that she backs the Defund Obamacare movement, an effort by conservatives to block funding for President Barack Obama's signature health care law.
"This beast must be stopped — by not funding it," Palin said in a statement released by the Senate Conservatives Fund. "Those in the Senate and those seeking to serve there must stand strong against this devastating program before it reveals its true face now recognized by both sides of the aisle as the bureaucratic and economic beast that will deny our families, our businesses, and our sick the ability to access health care."
Palin joins a number of Republicans in the Senate who have pledged to oppose a continuing resolution to fund the government if it includes funds for the Affordable Care Act. The effort, launched by Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) last month, is also backed by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and over a dozen others.
"It would be unfortunate if Democrats in the Senate insisted on shutting down the government simply because they want to defend – regardless of the costs – a law that has become increasingly, untenably unpopular among the American people," Lee said.
Others in the party, including House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio), have spoken out against the movement, arguing that shutting down the government is not a viable option in Republicans' ongoing fight against the health care law.
"I want to defund this bill, but I also want a way to do it that kills it," Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) said last month.
Palin's support for the anti-Obamacare push was first reported by the Washington Post.
Before You Go
