Obamacare was the implementation of a 1989 Heritage Foundation plan to implement an individual mandated health care system.

Also by no available metric did Obamacare "improve things". Healthcare costs rose significantly above the pre-ACA trend, bankruptcy increased, and health outcomes plummeted across nearly all metrics.

The ACA would have passed much faster if they didn't try "working across the aisle" with the Republicans. If I remember, the original plan was to expand medicare to encompass more people who need it but negotiated to what Mitt Romney passed in his state while governor. Then the Republicans all voted against what they wanted. So the Democrats are either a paid opposition party or so absolutely naive to the dealings of Republicans and keep stepping on that rake. As well instead of making it a stepping stone they don't really talk about improving it either. Also in that time they could have enshrined abortion rights into law that is harder to overthrow than a supreme court ruling.

No matter how your parse things, the Democrats aren't good.

You're making the point for us. Obamacare is a 90s conservative proposal, it also completely killed the possibility of single payer healthcare for a generation. Republicans ratchet things right and then Democrats lock it in, great example you provided thank you.

When was the last time Republicans had a 60-vote majority in the Senate? Why do you need 60 votes to fix that which didn't take 60 votes to break?

Then its time for a third option.

Obamacare forced every American to purchase private health insurance. It wasn't a victory for anyone but United and Aetna.