Sen. Coons: Pump the brakes on "free health care"

Democratic Sen. Chris Coons pushed back today against his party's leftward shift on health care, saying a more moderate tack is better for both winning elections and governing. "We can be bold by saying we can make healthcare affordable, without having to say we’ll make it free,” Coons said, according to the Washington Examiner.

Why it matters: The highest-profile Democrats — most of the party's leading 2020 prospects as well as insurgent candidates like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez — have embraced some version of "Medicare for All." Coons is not the only Democrat who's afraid the party is going too far, embracing what he called "pie in the sky policies" that energize progressives but may not appeal to the political center.