Opinion: McCain, Murkowsi and Collins said ‘no.’ Now can they get the GOP to say ‘yes’ to bipartisanship?

To the editor: The “nay” votes of a few American heroes -- Senators John McCain, Lisa Murkowski and Susan Collins — said no to those who would take away affordable healthcare from tens of millions of Americans in order to get the hundreds of billions of dollars needed to cut the taxes of the tens of thousands of the wealthiest Americans including the Trump family and friends.

Our bipartisan heritage should be retrievable now that the meanness of the right wing of the Republican Party has been exposed and defeated.

Sid Turkish, Beverly Hills

To the editor: The GOP never had a better idea. None of its three “replacement” options lowered costs, boosted benefits or extended care to more Americans. Each of them actually made everything worse. Given that fact, the Affordable Care Act must, in contrast, be a reasonably good piece of legislation. It needs improving, but it’s far better than anything the GOP could come up with.

And for the past eight years, all Sen. Mitch McConnell cared about was de-legitimizing President Obama — first by obstructing him at every turn in an effort to make Obama a one-term president, and then by seeking to erase the 44th president’s most significant legislative achievement. He failed on both counts.

For the good of the nation, the GOP now owes the American people two things: good-faith bipartisan negotiations that fix what needs fixing in the ACA so it works as intended, and removal of the obstructionist McConnell from his position of power.

Marcy Rothenberg, Porter Ranch

To the editor: Sen. John McCain is a hero for Obamacare advocates. However, he now has a target on his back, and has incurred the eternal wrath of Trump. All unnecessary.

He need only have stayed in Arizona a few more days, missing the vote to open debate on repeal, and ended this nightmare quietly.

He argues for collaboration yet just before the “skinny” repeal, he votes down a motion to bring repeal legislation to committee, then does a 180 and votes it down. The “maverick” need only have stayed home to achieve the same result.

David Marsh, Los Angeles

Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook