Sen. John Thune: Obama Statement Admits ACA 'Punishing' Americans

President Barack Obama acknowledged that his signature healthcare law is hurting people when he announced another year's delay of the contentious part of the employer mandate  this week, says Sen. John Thune.

"The president said the other day that their goal is not to punish folks, which I think admits . . . they know how punishing this is to the American people," Thune, a South Dakota Republican, said Wednesday on Fox News Channel's "On the Record with Greta Van Susteren."

Thune called the 28 delays to various parts of the law an "abuse of power" by the president.

He gave two main reasons for the Obamacare delays: the law is hurting people economically and hurting Democrats politically.

Republicans want to repeal the entire law, but Democrats, who have fought for universal healthcare for decades, want to try to fix the troubled Affordable Care Act.

Whichever side wins that argument, Thune noted, it is Congress' job under the Constitution to pass or change laws, not the president's.

"What this president has done with this abuse of power is basically saying, 'I'm above the law,'" Thune said.

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