The federal government was shut down for 43 days, the longest in American history, with Democrats hoping to save the subsidies that help make the ACA, aka “Obamacare,” affordable for all 43 days during which thousands of federal employees either worked without receiving a paycheck, were laid off, or had to quit their unpaid job to find paying work.
While the Democrats’ efforts to fight for those subsidies were admirable, the eight Senators who held the line against a massive health insurance premium spike ultimately caved to the Republican agenda and voted to reopen the government for business as usual. Reps. Henry Cuellar of Texas, Don Davis of North Carolina, Adam Gray of California, Jared Golden of Maine, Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington, and Tom Suozzi of New York all voted with Republicans, while Republicans Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Rep. Greg Steube of Florida broke with their party to vote “no.” The final tally was 222 to 209.
What about those subsidies, you ask? They weren’t included in the negotiation. However, Republicans pinky “promise” to bring the issue to a vote once things are moving again.
Sure, Jan.
NPR reports that President Orange signed the bill into law, which will not only fund some federal agencies until next September but also the SNAP payments that people so desperately need; the backpay owed to employees who have not been paid; and a reversal of the layoffs that Trump ordered due to the shutdown.
“This was an easy extension but they didn’t want to do it the easy way,” Trump said. “They wanted to do it the hard way.”
To say that this issue has driven a wedge between many elected officials from the left is an understatement. The party that seemed primed to have a big midterm season following the historic victories of the recent off-year elections is now in crisis once again. Many Senators and Congresspersons are none-too-pleased with this Republican “promise” because Republicans under Trump cannot be trusted by any means.
“A handshake deal with my Republican colleagues to reopen the government and no guarantee to actually lower costs is simply not good enough,” said Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wisc., who voted against the measure.
Republicans have no plan for how to make healthcare affordable, but they are insistent that Obamacare must be dismantled. Many of the people who will suffer as a result of this dismantling will be die-hard conservatives in deeply red states. However, that doesn’t move the needle on the right side of the aisle. They want what they want, the American people be damned. The midterm elections are going to put a lot of voters in a despairing state of cognitive dissonance, continue voting for Republicans to “own the libs” or vote in your own self-interest of having health insurance.
