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Some Republicans are cautioning against repealing the Affordable Care Act too quickly and urging the party take the foot off the accelerator. The reason: there's no plan on how to replace what they roll back. And while GOP lawmakers are eager to please their base with headlines of Obamacare's repeal, they don't want to be blamed for leaving people without health insurance and chaos in the healthcare market.

Sen. John McCain told reporters Tuesday that he supports taking a slower approach to repealing the law, saying he is "always worried about something that took a long time in the making and we've got to concentrate our efforts to making sure that we do it right so that nobody's left out."

Newt Gingrich, the former Republican House Speaker and a close ally of President-elect Donald Trump, told CNN that a big risk for Republicans is getting blamed for taking away people's health coverage.

"Number one thing (Republicans) have to avoid is putting themselves in a position where Democrats can frighten people -- that somehow, they won't have access to health care because of Republicans," Gingrich said.

Gingrich stressed that before Republicans send a bill repealing Obamacare to Trump's desk, the party must make real progress on a replacement plan. "They have to have bridges to give people a sense of comfort that they're not going to be abandoned," he said.

These initial hints of anxiety from Republicans foreshadow an internal GOP tug-of-war on Obamacare in the coming weeks.

For now, party leaders are leaning towards a repeal bill that includes a two- or three-year transition period that would offer a buffer -- a strategy that has been dubbed "repeal and delay."

But healthcare experts warn that even if the repeal doesn't go into effect right away, the uncertainty could lead to insurance companies fleeing the marketplace and potentially putting millions of people's coverage at risk.

In a clear effort to counter some of the early criticism, leaders of the conservative House Republican Study Committee plan to unveil legislation on Wednesday that they argue would both repeal and replace Obamacare.

The bill was previously introduced by GOP Rep. Phil Roe, a physician, and has not been endorsed by leadership. While it is unlikely to emerge as the main Obamacare repeal bill in the House, it marks an effort by conservatives to push back on the suggestion that the party has no replacement plan.

All of this comes as Democrats are pouncing on the opportunity to turn the tables on Republicans.

Lawmakers are planning a PR blitz throughout the month of January, accusing Republicans for possibly putting millions of Americans' health coverage in jeopardy.

Sen. Joe Manchin, a moderate Democrat from West Virginia, warned that repeal and delay approach would result in a "chaotic" scene.

"I'm just going to caution again, my friends: Don't repeal this unless there's a bipartisan group," Manchin said. "And if you don't have anything to replace it with, don't put repeal on the board."

"It's the old thing of going into a china shop -- you break it, you own it," Pelosi said.

Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein told CNN on Tuesday that she is in the process of crafting counter-messaging on Obamacare, along the lines of: "Look at what this is going to do to people."

"That's the important thing," she said. "How many people are going to lose their healthcare?"

CNN's Deirdre Walsh and Tal Kopan contributed to this report.

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Republicans already jittery about quick Obamacare repeal ...

Its a good time to take stock of the Republican Partys status. The year 2012 was a continuation of struggles among mainstream factions, tea party activists, special-interest groups and the entrenched elite. On the national stage, Mitt Romney emerged as the leader of the estimated 35 percent of Americans who identify as Republicans. Its important to understand who the Republican voters are, where they live, what they believe and how they relate to the rest of America.

Republicans love to talk about individual rights in the U.S. economy, and the pursuit of the American Dream. This is generally reflected in polls about their beliefs, and also in the way they live their lives. Republicans tend to live away from the East and West Coasts, predominantly in the South and Midwest. And, within those states, Republicans tend to live outside of concentrated urban areas. Republican affiliation in cities with populations over 500,000 is only 39 percent, compared with 52 percent in suburban areas and 59 percent in rural areas.

Suburban communities strongly lean Republican, and rural areas are almost exclusively Republican. Republicans are more likely to own their own home. Many of the areas hardest hit by the U.S. economys housing downturn are Republican strongholds, although that does not necessarily mean that Republican voters are being foreclosed against at a higher level than Democrats. Republicans have a strong emphasis on personal ownership, and home ownership is a major component of that ideal.

Part of the American Dream is having a spouse and children, and Republicans attain that aspect in large numbers. Sixty percent of married men vote Republican, along with 55 percent of married women. Additionally, 53 percent of families with children younger than 18 identify as Republican. This focus on traditional family values may explain in part why only 23 percent of gay, lesbian or bisexual individuals identify as Republican.

Financially, Republicans fare better than either Democrats or Independents, and tend to identify themselves as such. Republican candidates gain a significantly higher percentage of votes from individuals with incomes over $50,000 per year, and the advantage increases along with the income level, to a height of 63 percent of individuals earning $200,000 or more a year supporting Republicans. This level is the direct inverse of individuals earning less than $15,000 a year, who support Democrats at 63 percent and Republicans at only 36 percent.

Republicans also express a much higher level of satisfaction with their personal financial situation than either Democrats or Independents. Before the U.S. economys downturn, an all-time high of 81 percent of Republicans expressed satisfaction with their personal financial situation. That number dropped to 61 percent in 2009, but it is still significantly higher than the corresponding 52 percent of Independents and 49 percent of Democrats. A much larger proportion of Republicans than Democrats also identify themselves as haves versus have-nots.

Republicans have higher well-being than Democrats or Independents. A well-being survey looks at things like workplace perceptions, access to basic necessities and physical health. Interestingly, the one area Democrats outperformed Republicans in one such study was in life evaluation meaning that Democrats may be doing worse than Republicans in terms of well-being, but they arent bothered by it as much as Republicans.

On average, Republicans are more charitable financially and otherwise than either Democrats or Independents. Despite the perception that theyre stingy either because of personal wealth or policy positions that dont advocate for a government-backed public safety net numerous studies have found American Republicans to be among the most generous people on earth, and not just financially. Republicans also provide more volunteer hours and donate blood more frequently.

Labor unions have had a rough transition in the modern U.S. economy. Nationwide, unions have seen a significant decrease in their public support, although 64 percent of Americans still feel labor unions are necessary to protect the working person. Among Republicans, however, only 43 percent view labor unions as necessary to protect the working person, and 54 percent actively disagree. The U.S. economys downturn has served as a backdrop to this slump in support, as 62 percent of Republicans saw unions as necessary as recently as 2003. This compares with 61 percent of Independents and 82 percent of Democrats who view unions as necessary to protect the working person.

Educationally, there are two main blocs of Republican voters: white working-class voters and white people with undergraduate degrees.

White working-class voters are defined as white people who have received a high school diploma or have some college experience, but no degree. This group has fallen as a percentage of the overall vote by 15 percent between 1988 and 2008, but continuously votes Republican at a 20-point or more advantage.

For the past several decades, Republicans have also won a larger percentage of votes from white voters with undergraduate degrees, although this support has been eroding over the past few election cycles, from an impressive 20-point advantage in 1988 to a 4-point advantage in 2008.

This could be due to more women graduating from college, or a genuine shift in the voting behaviors of the millennial generation.

Older voters, on average, skew Republican. This advantage is partially offset by the Democratic slant of younger voters, although older voters are more likely to vote. The average Republican is 50, while the average Democrat is 47.

Republicans are predominantly white, with 87 percent of them identifying as non-Hispanic white. This percentage has remained steady for well over a decade long before the sizable increase in minority support that Democrats saw with the first African-American president.

African-Americans are the least likely minority group to vote Republican, regardless of income. Hispanic voters, however, who are the fastest growing minority group in the United States, often identify as Republican when they receive a higher income.

Republicans are often cast as a party that is becoming increasingly religious. This may or may not be true on a policy level, but it certainly does not translate into demographic data. Between 1987 and the late 1990s, Republicans and Democrats polled as equally religious. Democrats have seen a significant decrease in their level of religious participation, while Republican numbers have remained consistent. Any perception of increasing religion on the Republican side may actually be a miscast impression caused by Democrats decreasing level of religious conviction.

The Republican Party is almost exclusively Christian. GOP candidates earn 59 percent of all Protestant votes, 67 percent of all white Protestant votes, 52 percent of the Catholic vote and only 25 percent of the Jewish vote.

The Republican Party has some clear age, race and religious trends, but is a dynamic assortment of individuals from across the country. As a new presidential term begins, these are the people who will join together to create the partys future.

Bill Fay is a journalism veteran with a nearly four-decade career in reporting and writing for daily newspapers, magazines and public officials. His focus at Debt.org is on frugal living, veterans' finances, retirement and tax advice. Bill can be reached at bfay@debt.org.

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Economic Demographics of Republicans & Conservatives

Chairman Keith A. Davis

Keith A. Davis is chairman of the Atlantic County Republican Committee. He also currently serves as Chairman of the New Jersey Republican Chairmens Association. An attorney, Keith is a partner in the firm of Nehmad Perillo & Davis of Egg Harbor Township. He joined the firm in September of 2000 and his practice focuses on land use, commercial and real estate transactions, municipal law and regulatory affairs.

Keith received his law degree in 1999 from Rutgers School of Law, Camden, and served as law clerk to the Hon. L. Anthony Gibson from September of 1999 to August of 2000.

Keith graduated cum laude from St. Josephs University in 1995 with a degree in politics. He attended graduate school at Rutgers University in New Brunswick and, in 1997, received a masters degree in public policy. While at Rutgers, he received a paid fellowship to the Eagleton Institute of Politics.

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Governor Chris Christie has a deep affection and strong commitment to New Jersey. Born in Newark and raised in Livingston, Chris has lived in New Jersey his entire life. Chris and his wife of 22 years, Mary Pat, now reside in Mendham, where they are rai

Elected District Three Freeholder November 2014. John has served as an Egg Harbor TownshipCommitteeman (1995 to 2014) and Deputy Mayor (1996). John was a member of numerousboards and commissions including the E

Maureen Kern began her first term on the Freeholder Board in 2016. She is formerly the President of City Council in Somers Point.

Kim Guadagno was elected New Jersey's first Lieutenant Governor in November 2009. As Governor Chris Christie's running mate, she was sworn into office on January 19, 2010. In addition to serving as the L

A boy named Frank LoBiondo grew up in constant admiration of his father; a man who knew the balance between the demands of operating a successful business, serving as an elected public servant, being act

PO Box 484 Linwood, NJ 08221 Phone 609.677.0707 Fax 609.677.1905

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Atlantic County Republicans

LeadingSenate Republicans are preparing to launch a coordinated and wide-ranging probe intoRussias alleged meddling in the U.S. elections and its potential cyberthreats to themilitary, digging deep intowhat they view as corrosive interference in the nationsinstitutions.

Such an aggressive approach puts them on a direct collision course with President-elect Donald Trump, who downplays the possibilityRussia had any role in the November elections arguing that a hack of the Democratic National Committee emailsmay have been perpetrated by some guy in his home in New Jersey. The fracture could become more prominentafter Trump is inaugurated and begins settingforeign policy. He has already indicated that the country should get along with Russia since the two nations have many common strategic goals.

But some of Trumps would-be Republican allies on Capitol Hill disagree. Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John McCain (Ariz.) is readying a probe of possible Russian cyber-incursions into U.S. weapons systems, and he said he has been discussing the issue with Senate Select Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr (N.C.), with whom he will be working closely to investigate Russias suspected interference in the U.S. elections and cyberthreats to the military and other institutions. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has been apprised of the discussions.Burr did not respond to requests for comment.

Senate Foreign Relations Committee ChairmanBob Corker (R-Tenn.)also said he intends to hold hearings next year into alleged Russian hacking. Corker is on Trumps shortlist for secretary of state, according to the Trump transition team.

Trump transition officials could not be reached for comment.

The loudest GOP calls for a Russia probe are coming from McCain and Sen.Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.). Both have taken a hard line on Russia and have been highlycritical of Trump, particularly hispraise of President Vladimir Putin.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) says he wants to investigate whether Russia interfered with the 2016 U.S. election, amongst claims that Donald Trump's rhetoric on Russia and Vladimir Putin is too soft. (Peter Stevenson/The Washington Post)

Theyll keep doing more here until they pay a price, Graham said of Russia. Heplans to spearhead legislation andhold a series of investigative hearings next year into Russias misadventures throughout the world, includingRussian meddling in the U.S. elections.

[Republican lawmakers move to restrain Trump on Russia]

Im going after Russia in every way you can go after Russia. I think theyre one of the most destabilizing influences on the world stage. I think they did interfere with our elections, and I want Putin personally to pay the price, Graham said in an interview with CNN on Wednesday.

McCain said his Armed Services Committee will launch a probe in the 115th Congress into Russias cyber-capabilities against the U.S. military and weapons systems,because the real threat is cyber, he explained.

But McCain said he expects the investigation will also dovetail with the topic of Russias suspected hacking of the DNC and state-based election systems which include a hack that took place in McCains home state of Arizona.

See, the problem with hacking is that if theyre able to disrupt elections, then its a national security issue, obviously, McCain said Thursday.

He added that the Armed Services Committee was still formulating exactly how to address the issue during hearings. But despite Trumps dismissal, McCain said that theres very little doubt Russia interfered in the U.S. elections, which he called very worthy of examination.

The U.S. government in October officially accused Russia of hacking the DNCs emails during the presidential campaign. The emails were posted on websites such as WikiLeaks and embarrassed the party, notably forcing Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.) to resign as DNC chairwoman.

And U.S. military officialsofficials are concerned about Russias capacity to steal military secrets and corrupt operations: Officials already suspect that Russian hackers were behind a major email breach at the Pentagon last year. And the military could be a target for backlash, after an NBC News report widely circulated by Russian media said that U.S. military hackers were ready to launch cyberattacks against Russia in the event of an obvious election hack.

Trump continued to downplay Russian involvement in the electionsin aninterview released this week forTime magazines Person of the Year feature. In the interview,the president-elect disputed the Obama administrations accusation that Russia interfered in the election.

[U.S. government officially accuses Russia of interfering with elections]

I dont believe they interfered, Trump said of Russia. It could be Russia. And it could be China. And it could be some guy in his home in New Jersey. I believe that it could have been Russia and it could have been any one of many other people. Sources or even individuals.

Some Republicans delicately demurred, while still defending Trumps ability to negotiate with Putin.

The Democratic National Committee the intelligence community is of pretty much one mind that Russia was involved in that, was behind that, Rep. Peter T. King (R-N.Y.) said in an MSNBC interview. King is a member of the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence and chairman of the House Homeland Security subcommittee on intelligence and counterterrorism.

King added that he was confident Trump will not be taken in by Putin.

Democrats have also taken issue with Trumps desire to pursue more friendly relations with Moscow, as well as his affinity for Putin.

The primary area of discomfort for the Republicans here and the Trump administration, in foreign policy and national security, is over Russia, said Rep. Adam Schiff (Calif.), the House Intelligence Committees ranking Democrat. He accused Trump on MSNBC this week of becoming a propaganda piece for the Kremlin, adding: They may be giving him breathing space right now, but I dont expect that to last.

Sincethe election, Republican lawmakers havevoted to reestablish a U.S. hard line against Russias global ventures. TheHouse has passed measure tosanction anyone who supports the Syrian government in its ongoing civil war, a category that primarily includes Russia and Iran. There is also languagein the annual defense policy bill to provide millions of dollars in lethal aid to Ukraine, where the government in Kiev is engaged in open hostilities against Russian-backed separatists.

But many Democrats are impatient with Republicans for not taking faster and more concrete steps against Russia afterthe Obama administrationofficially accused Moscow of meddling in the elections.

Corker expressed early interest in holding hearings on Russia. But months later, those hearings have not been held. Were getting no pressure from anyone we just feel like its something we should do, Corker said in an interview Wednesday, when asked if the president-elect had pressured him not to raise the topic. As a matter of fact, we attempted to set a classified briefing up this week.

Obama administration officials maintain that the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and other officials were ready to brief senators about Russias suspected role in the DNC hack on Thursday. Administration officials said that at the last minute, the committee dramatically broadened the scope of the hearing, forcing them to cancel.

A spokeswoman for Corker said the hearing was postponed because State Department officials were unavailable due to previous travel commitments. Sheadded that Corker and Sen. Benjamin L. Cardin (Md.), the Senate Foreign Relations Committees ranking Democrat, received a classified briefing on cyberthreats prior to the election.

Corker pledged Wednesday that hearings investigating Russias role in the elections would be forthcoming next year. Were definitely going to look at it, he said.

An aggressive probe of Russias activities may not extend to the House, where leading Republicans say they have already been investigating Russia and will continue their effortsregardless of Trumps stance.

[Russia]s always been a priority for me, and it will remain a priority for me, House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence Chairman Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) said.

Rep. Mac Thornberry (R-Tex.), chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, stressed that his committee has been looking at Russian cyberthreats to the military for the last two years.

Were going to have to all pay more attention to cyber and to Russian activities to influence things through cyber, Thornberry said.

Democrats, meanwhile, are going to use whatever power they have to ensure that suspected Russian activities in the elections and beyond get attention.

Seven top-ranked Democrats sent a letter to President Obama on Tuesday asking for classified briefings regarding Russian entities hacking of American political organizations, including theDNC hack, emails released by WikiLeaks and fake news.

Regardless of whether you voted for Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, or anyone else, Russias attacks on our election are an attempt to degrade our democracy and should chill every American Democratic, Republican, or Independent to the core, said Rep. Elijah E. Cummings (Md.),the ranking Democrat on the House Oversight and Government Relations Committee.

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Republicans ready to launch wide-ranging probe of Russia ...

This post has been updated with a defiant statement from the Trump transition team.

The Washington Postis now reportingthat the CIA has concluded something widely suspected but never flatly stated by the intelligence community: that Russia moved deliberately to help elect Donald Trump as president of the United States not just to undermine the U.S. political process more generally.

The Post's report cites officials whosay they have identified individuals connected to the Russian government who gave WikiLeaks emails hacked from the Democratic National Committee and top Hillary Clinton aide John Podesta. One official described the conclusion that this was intended to help Trump as the consensus view.

The report highlights and exacerbates the increasingly fraught situation in which congressional Republicans find themselves with regard to Russia and Trump. By acknowledging and digging into the increasing evidence that Russia helped or at least attempted to help tip the scales in Trumps favor, they risk raising questions about whether Trump would have won without Russian intervention.

Trump, after all, won by a margin of about 80,000 votes cast across three states, winning each of the decisive states by less than one percentage point.So even a slight influence could have plausibly made the difference, though we'll never be able to prove it one way or another.

CIA briefers told senators in a closed-door briefing it was now "quite clear" that electing Trump was Russia's goal, according to officials. (Victoria Walker/The Washington Post)

While saying that Russia clearly tried to help Trumpdoesn't inherently call into question the legitimacy of Trump's win earlier Friday, the White House made sure to emphasize thatit's not making that case it's not hard to connect the dots. And Trump and his party know it. The Post's report cited Republicans who expressed skepticism about the available evidence when presented with it in September, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.).

In addition,any GOP effort to dig into the matter risks antagonizingthe president-elect, who has said flatly that he doesnt believe Russia interfered with the election, despite receiving intelligence briefings to the contrary. And he's proved more than willing to go after fellow Republicans who run afoul of him.

On the other hand, if Republicans play down the issue, they risk giving a pass to an antagonistic foreign power that significant majorities of Americans and members of Congress do not trust and which, if the evidence is accurate, wields significant power to wage successful cyberwarfare with the United States.

Already, House Democrats have begun pushing forsomething akin to the 9/11 Commission to look into allegations of Russian meddling. During the campaign, they pushed for hearings on the same issue.

Until this week, they'd beenunable to get much buy-in from congressional Republicans. But Sen. Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.) voiced support for a probe on Wednesday, and now Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John McCain (R-Ariz.) says he is working with Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr (R-N.C.) on a wide-ranging Senate probe, as The Posts Karoun Demirjian reportedThursday.

Im going after Russia in every way you can go after Russia, Graham said. I think theyre one of the most destabilizing influences on the world stage. I think they did interfere with our elections, and I want [Russian President Vladimir] Putin personally to pay the price.

But even as these probesstart to materialize, Trump is singing a far different tune. In his interview with Time magazine for his Person of the Year award, Trump suggested that the interference could just as well have come from someone in New Jersey as from the Russian government.

I dont believe they interfered, Trump said. That became a laughing point not a talking point, a laughing point. Any time I do something, they say, Oh, Russia interfered.

Trump added: It could be Russia. And it could be China. And it could be some guy in his home in New Jersey.

Trump also maintained over and over again on the campaign trail that he wanted a better relationship with Russia and praised Putin as a strong leader while minimizing Russias favoritism for his campaign. And he did all of this at a time when Putin was very unpopular in the United States and even as the evidence was pointing in the direction of Russian meddling.

In other words, Trump has shown that he's committed to seeing the best in Russia, and it's unlikely another report from the dishonest media citing anonymous sources is going to change his mind.

And Trump has every reason to continue to dig in. He doesnt want to breathe any life into the story line that he owes his election to Russian interference. Trump, after all, is a winner, and the idea that someone else might have won it for him just won't fly.

Update: A statement from Trump's transition team, as expected, took a defiant tone about The Post's report: These are the same people that said Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction. The election ended a long time ago in one of the biggest Electoral College victories in history. Its now time to move on and 'Make America Great Again.'

But for congressional Republicans, the evidence is increasingly getting to the point where they simply cant ignore it, and some of them are feeling compelled to act in a way that Trump isnt likely to embrace.

Compounding the dilemma for these Republicans is that many GOP and Trump voters are disinclined to think Russia meddled in the election. A poll released Friday by Democratic pollster Democracy Corps showed 55 percent of Trump voters and Republicans who didnt vote for Trump say its probably true that stories alleging Russian interference in the election are conspiracy theories pushed by Clinton.

Many Republicans are undoubtedly concerned about this. But as long as Trump is holding fast to the idea that this is all made up in an effort to undermine him, this whole thing could reinforce the long-standing chasm within the GOP, with him and his base pitted against establishment Republicans who will (again) be made to look like theyre trying to take down their outsider president-elect. And you can bet thatll be how Trump pitches it.

It all presents a possibly inauspicious start for the GOP Congress in the Trump era: a potential Trump vs. congressional-Republicans-battle over the same election that surprisingly installed him as president.

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The CIA concluded Russia worked to elect Trump ...