Just saw this great article on Facebook:

[CaliforniaPeggy]

I thought it explained what happened very well.

https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2017/7/28/16055132/murkowski-collins-mccain

Here's an excerpt:

Murkowski and Collins were the only Republicans to vote against a motion to proceed with the health care bill debate. Both women cast votes against the Better Care Reconciliation Act, which could have led to 22 million more uninsured Americans. They both also voted against the Obamacare Reconciliation Act — repeal and delay — which could have led to 32 million more uninsured Americans.

Both senators said they could not support bills that would leave millions of people without health insurance. When skinny repeal — seemingly the last shot for the GOP — came down, they stood their ground and voted no again.

Through all of this, the backlash against these two women senators was severe. Two House Republicans threatened them with violence...

[dalton99a]

1. Kick.

[Wounded Bear]

2. K & R ......

those two women showed a lot more courage and resolve on this issue than McCain did.

[Girard442]

3. How long is it going to be before the Deplorables do the math and realize...

...that 49-51 is a loss, but 49-49 is a win?

[thbobby]

4. Women. The saviors of democracy.

Hard to admire any repug. Easy to respect and admire women that stand up to bullying and chauvinsim for their beliefs. I respect Murkowski and Collins a great deal. I also disagree with them a lot of the time. That is what democracy embraces. The GOP has become a mafia like organization and not a political organization. Murkowski, Collins, and even McCain put themselves above the GOP Cosa nostra.

[Lionel Mandrake]

5. What a relief.

For once, John McCain did the right thing.

Also contributing to their latest defeat was the ineptitude of the Republican leadership. Things could have been a lot worse. Just imagine what would happen if the incompetent president and the incompetent Senate majority leader were replaced by more effective right-wing politicians.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

6. Indeed!

It seems to me that the Republicans don't know how to legislate.

They only know how to block, and lie, and try to stop any real progress from being made.

[Whiskeytide]

8. Certainly the new breed...

... of republican senators and reps are incompetent. The ran against Obama and were elected to oppose him. That's all they did for 6 years. They don't know how to do anything else. Most of them STILL blame Obama for every failure they muster.

Easy to get elected and re elected when all you have to say is I'll oppose Obama, and then conveniently blame Obama for everything.

Now they will have to run on "what have you done lately". I think they will find the going a little tougher.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

9. I think they are already finding out how much tougher it is to GOVERN...

than simply oppose.

[tblue37]

10. Some R senators seemed not to know that the House could, if they chose, send the

skinny repeal up for Trump to sign, without ever going into conference with the Senate to hash out a compromise bill.

[HAB911]

7. McCain What Senators can do if they're not seeking re-election

Murkowski & Collins=what Senators do if they put Americans above re-election

Link to tweet

[gratuitous]

11. Let's not forget 48 Democrat and Independent Senators who also stood firm

Sort of like how Hank and Tommie Aaron share the major league record for home runs by brothers. Hank hit 755 home runs, Tommie had 13.

But I will credit Sen. McCain with faint praise: By forcing the so-called "skinny repeal" bill to a vote of the full Senate and failing, it cut Majority Leader McConnell off at the knees, and might very well end this nonsense at least for this legislative session.