"'Will you walk into my parlor?' said the Spider to the Fly." 

The president would do well to recall how that old poem goes, because Hill Democrats are now saying they'd be glad to work with the White House on reforming Obamacare – just as long as the president refrains from attacking the law.

Earlier this week, the White House said it was willing to work with Democrats on health care and other Trump agenda items.

Needless to say, there are monumental risks in working with Democrats on anything – especially Obamacare reform.

Chicago Tribune:

Forty-four members of the Senate Democratic caucus have penned a letter to President Donald Trump signaling they are open to working with him on health care - but not before he ends his effort to attack the Affordable Care Act.

"Members of the Democratic caucus remain ready and willing to work with you on policies that would improve the stability of the individual insurance market," the senators write in the letter shared with The Washington Post. "We ask that you begin the work of improving health care for millions of Americans by rescinding your January 20th executive order."

Trump signed an executive order that day giving federal agencies broad powers to unwind regulations created under the ACA, which is also widely known as Obamacare.

"Your administration must commit to putting an end to all efforts to unravel the ACA, undermine the health care system, increase costs, or hurt patients, providers and families," the letter tells Trump.

The call to rescind the Obamacare executive orders isn't serious – more like an opening bid.  But as far as efforts to "undermine the health care system, increase costs, or hurt patients, providers and families," – isn't Obamacare already doing that?

"ObamaCare will explode and we will all get together and piece together a great healthcare plan for THE PEOPLE. Do not worry!" Trump tweeted Saturday. The Senate Democrats took issue with that statement.

"While we would welcome your sincere interest in bipartisan work to improve quality, lower costs, and expand coverage, we are concerned by your recent statement indicating it would be a good thing to make the ACA 'explode,'" they write, adding, "Instead, we urge you to use your executive authority to support a stable, competitive insurance marketplace."

After a couple of years of decline, it seems evident that Obamacare won't fatally "explode" in one glorious episode.  Instead, what we are seeing is a gradual meltdown.  What the Democrats are denying is that the tipping point for Obamacare's destruction has already occurred.  The big insurance companies who no longer participate in the exchanges are not coming back.  Premium costs are spiraling out of control.  Coverage is getting worse, while health care costs are still rising.

Under these circumstances, forcing people to accept insurance policies through the individual mandate is immoral.  If Trump is going to work with Democrats, he must test their seriousness by calling on them to support the ending of the individual mandate.  Otherwise, the Dems are just blowing political smoke.

There are too many parts of Obamacare near and dear to the hearts of Democrats for them to get serious about reforming the law.  For that reason alone, the president should abandon this terrible notion that Democrats would help him succeed in any way, go back to the drawing board on Obamacare repeal, and work the GOP.