Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said Sunday that he favored the Senate voting to reopen the federal government but would not negotiate with Senate Democrats over their plan to extend Affordable Care Act subsidies while the government was still shut down.
“I’m willing to vote to open the government tomorrow,” Graham said on NBC News’ “Meet the Press.” “To my Democratic friends: I am not voting to expand these subsidies.”
“Let’s have a rational discussion, but not with the government closed. It’s up to you. If you want to keep it closed, that’s fine. It’s not going to change the way I approach health care,” the South Carolina senator added.
Graham’s comments come on the 12th day of the government shutdown, as hundreds of thousands of federal workers remain laid off and critical government services operate without or understaffed.
The shutdown continues as the Senate is deadlocked over whether to approve a temporary government funding measure.
The House has voted several times over the past two weeks on a stopgap funding measure backed by GOP leadership that already passed the House and would keep the government funded at previous levels through Nov. 21. Not enough Democrats have voted with Republicans to get over the 60-vote threshold to pass that bill.
We would like to hear from you how you are experiencing the government shutdown, whether you are a federal employee who is unable to work right now or someone who is feeling the effects of the shutdown in your daily life. Please contact us at tips@nbcuni.com or contact us here.
Meanwhile, Democrats have proposed a temporary funding measure that would keep the government open until October 31. That continuing resolution would also reverse Medicaid cuts approved by Republicans earlier this year and expand subsidies for the Affordable Care Act that are set to expire at the end of the year.
Graham said Sunday that negotiating a possible extension of subsidies while the government was shut down was a failure for him, referencing the 2018-19 government shutdown, where Republicans and President Donald Trump tried to force Democrats to approve funding for a border wall.
“You know, we shut down the government for 35 days, Republicans are trying to force Democrats to build the border wall,” Graham told “Meet the Press” moderator Kristen Welker. “Well, we finally got the wall built, but not because we shut down the government.”
“The subsidies we’re talking about here,” Graham added, “if the Affordable Care Act is so affordable, why, every time I think about it, are we spending $350 billion to keep it afloat?”
Meanwhile, Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., earlier on the show criticized Republicans for refusing to negotiate with Democrats, saying Trump had only spoken to Democratic leaders for an hour about ACA subsidies.
“I think it’s important for all Americans to know that this fight right now over the government shutdown is about one thing: the cost of your health care,” Kelly said. “Tens of millions of people – actually about 19 million people get health care through the Affordable Care Act, and their rates are going to increase dramatically and become unaffordable.”
“The president has negotiated for an hour, as far as we know, and House Republicans have been away for four weeks. And John Thune, the Senate majority leader, sent people home for four days,” Kelly added.
He noted that the House approved the stopgap funding measure on Sept. 19 and has not returned to Washington since. On Friday, Speaker Mike Johnson told House lawmakers that he would extend his district’s work period for at least one more week, through mid-October.
Asked whether Democrats would vote to reopen the government if Republicans promised to hold a vote on extending ACA subsidies once the government reopens, Kelly firmly said, “No.”
“Not at this time, no,” said the Arizona senator. “We need a real negotiation and we need a solution. We need this right for the American people. This is for a lot of people: Their health care is running off a cliff, and if we don’t fix this, it’s going to go over the top.”
Kelly added that for Democrats to reopen the government, they would need assurances that Republicans would not only vote on extending the subsidies, but that both sides could agree on what an extension would look like.
“Having some vote without a certain outcome” was not the solution, Kelly said.
“All this will require is getting everyone in a room for an extended period of time and coming to some reasonable conclusion,” he added.
In subsequent separate interviews on Fox News, Johnson and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries delved into their party’s stances on the government shutdown.
Johnson accused Democrats of not wanting to negotiate over health care subsidies, saying Democrats are “consuming time” because Republicans “had always counted on using these four weeks in October to finish those discussions.”
Meanwhile, Jeffries explained why Democrats insist the subsidies should be extended now, rather than approaching their expiration date at the end of the year.
“Open enrollment begins Nov. 1,” Jeffries said. “Tens of millions of Americans are receiving notices right now that their premiums, co-pays and deductibles are about to skyrocket, which is why we must address this issue. [GOP Rep.] “Marjorie Taylor Greene agrees that we have to address this health insurance crisis right now.”
Johnson also responded to Rep. Greene’s concerns about health care, as she criticized her party’s reluctance to address the issue in recent days.
“I had a thoughtful conversation with my friend Marjorie Taylor Greene on the phone the other night, a couple of nights ago, to let her know that there are a lot of Republicans in Congress who have been working around the clock on this,” Johnson told Fox News.
