As shutdown ends, furious Democrats eat their own

The Schumer Shutdown appears to be ending. It’s about time. By refusing to vote for a "clean" continuing resolution which would have kept government spending at levels they themselves approved earlier, Democrats have held the country hostage for a record-breaking 50 days. They have hurt Americans, angered their union allies and dampened consumer sentiment. For what?

What did Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and his Democratic colleagues gain from throwing hundreds of thousands out of work, endangering American air travelers, causing great hardship and anxiety for those dependent on SNAP benefits, and slowing the growth of the U.S. economy?

Nothing. They did not win an extension of Obamacare premium subsidies, they did not undo the Medicaid reforms that they fought tooth and nail and – worst of all for Schumer – the shutdown in no way endeared him to the democratic socialists who are tearing his party in two. Far from it.

One critic said of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, "If you can’t lead the fight to stop healthcare premiums from skyrocketing for Americans, what will you fight for?" (Tom Brenner/Getty Images)

Last spring, when Sen. Schumer joined with Republicans to keep the government open, he was blasted by progressives in his party who have vowed to "resist" President Donald Trump at every turn. They were furious that he gave in to the GOP and didn’t win any concessions for allowing the government to continue to function. 

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Never mind that polls always show that most Americans want our two political parties to work together to resolve the nation’s problems. Never mind that the president was elected by a majority of U.S. voters. The left, as is its wont, simply won’t have it, Democracy be damned.

One of Schumer’s harshest critics at the time was far-left "Squad" member Alexandria Ocasio-Cortes, who has hinted she might challenge her party’s de facto leader as he approaches re-election in 2028. In April, polling showed AOC could win that matchup.

Today, Schumer is again in hot water. California Rep. Ro Khanna, a progressive who represents Silicon Valley, has called for the ouster of Schumer as minority leader. He and other liberals are furious that Schumer failed to keep his party united, instead allowing eight members of the Senate Democratic caucus to vote for beginning to reopen the government.

Khanna posted on X: "If you can’t lead the fight to stop healthcare premiums from skyrocketing for Americans, what will you fight for?" 

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Schumer is also being attacked for not endorsing Zohran Mamdani, the 34-year-old antisemitic democratic socialist who was recently elected mayor of New York City. Schumer could not endorse Mamdani without angering his Jewish supporters and without alienating moderate Democrats who are rightly horrified that their party has been hijacked by the far left.

Progressive Wisconsin Rep. Mark Pocan is calling to replace Schumer, posting on X: "Don’t endorse or say who you voted for in NYC despite there being a Dem candidate. Get Dem Senators to negotiate a terrible ‘deal’ that does nothing real about healthcare. Screw over a national political party….Next…"

Schumer isn’t the only Democratic official in the crosshairs of his own party. Progressive New York City Councilman Chi Osse is apparently set to challenge House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries when the latter is up for re-election next year. Another New York representative, Richie Torres, will face off against yet another anti-Israel progressive, former Bronx Assemblyman Michael Blake. Elsewhere, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul is facing a primary challenge from her own leftist lieutenant governor. 

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Meanwhile, as Democrats eat their own, Americans are discovering the truth about Obamacare. Schumer and his Senate colleagues were fighting to prolong the enhanced subsidies established under President Joe Biden that made ACA health insurance premiums more affordable. Those subsidies were meant to expire at the end of this year. However, it turns out that premium costs without those subsidies would skyrocket, putting insurance out of reach for millions of families.

The subsidies under consideration were included in the American Rescue Act and the Inflation Reduction Act, both of which passed with zero Republican votes. Thus, having Democrats blame the GOP for the expiration of those payments is ridiculous.

The truth is that Obamacare, which covers only 7% of Americans and was also passed only with Democratic votes, is a failed program. It was meant to bring the cost of health insurance down, but never did. It was set up so that millions of young, healthy Americans would be forced to sign up as a result of the "individual mandate," a tax penalty which compelled people to have health insurance whether they wanted it or not. The healthcare costs of that young cohort were expected to be low, offsetting the higher expenses of older and sicker Americans.

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The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 ended the unpopular individual mandate, thus overturning the underlying method of spreading the cost of insurance over a larger pool of people. As a result, Obamacare increasingly covered individuals with higher healthcare costs, and premiums rose.

Obamacare premiums in general will rise about 30% for next year; with the expiration of the enhanced subsidies, some people are going to be hit with a premium hike of 50% or more.

Democrats are blaming the GOP for creating a "healthcare crisis," but that is dishonest. They voted for Obamacare, and they hid its true costs for years by offering ever more generous subsidies. And, they voted to allow those subsidies to expire. The cost of continuing those payments would be some $350 billion over 10 years, not including interest payments; the Trump administration wants to find a better path forward.

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Few Republicans want to tackle overhauling Obamacare, or our convoluted healthcare system, as both have proven in the past to be "third-rail" political issues. President Trump has proposed giving the billions of dollars that fund Affordable Care Act tax credits directly to Americans instead, rather than funneling those monies through insurers. That would presumably give consumers greater choice and better control of their healthcare dollars. 

That seems a promising approach but, really, it’s just the tip of the Obamacare iceberg. 

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