Pat Toomey says he won't be a 'rubber stamp' for Donald Trump

While Senator Pat Toomey plans to spearhead the conservative effort in a Republican Congress, the incumbent Republican vows to “not be a rubber stamp” for 1968 Wharton graduate and president-elect Donald Trump.

According to The Philadelphia Inquirer, Toomey told reporters at a news brief that “there will be times when I disagree with Donald Trump, and when I disagree I will say so.”

Toomey did not publicly support or endorse Trump during his senatorial campaign, but he did vote for his party's standard-bearer in the hope that the president-elect would push for a conservative agenda. 

After a narrow two-point win over Democrat Katie McGinty, Toomey has high hopes for Congress and the Trump administration, as well as his own vision of economic growth. Plans for the Senator’s second term include repealing Obamacare, creating new and reinforcing old sanctions on Iran, tax reform and cutting down corporate regulations.

Toomey hopes for “real progresses,” and the “economic recovery we’ve been waiting for," according to the Inquirer. 

While repealing Obamacare is a top concern of the Republican Party, Toomey said, there will be a plan to ease the transition for people currently insured under the Affordable Care Act. The Inquirer reported that Toomey would “consider measures such as creating subsidies to help people with preexisting conditions” currently under Obamacare.

Toomey, a self-identified moderate, hopes to continue the bipartisan effort on the gun background-check bill that he referenced heavily in his campaign.

Toomey called for unity, urging his supporters and Pennsylvania Democrats to reach across the aisle and the cul-de-sac. "What's important now is that we continue to debate our policy ideas with civility ... [and] find common ground," he said.