Spending roughly a dozen years in the U.S. Senate taught the new CEO of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) how to play defense, he revealed during an industry meeting last week, while answering a question about why he voted in favor of the Affordable Care Act.

According to Nelson, the vote was essentially one in favor of a private-market system. “You don’t always get to choose the most optimal legislation that you would like to have. At times, you play defense against legislation that is far worse,” he said.