Greene defection highlights health care cracks in GOP shutdown unity

Shutdown jockeying over health care is intensifying, with Republicans showing some cracks in their unity and House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries (N.Y.) insisting Democrats will only agree to a permanent extension of enhanced ObamaCare subsidies. 

President Trump and Republicans have sought to raise the pressure on Democrats to reopen the government by threatening mass firings of federal workers and withholding their back pay, but the GOP also is sending signals that Democratic attacks on health care are making them worry.  

Some Republican allies of Trump have been warning for months about the political consequences of failing to extend the enhanced subsidies, and Trump on Monday evening at the White House expressed an openness to working out an agreement on health care that could end the shutdown. 

Trump later seemed to backtrack, writing on his Truth Social platform that no deal would be done until Democrats vote to fund the government — which they say they won’t do without a deal on a permanent extension.

Jeffries outright rejected the idea of a one-year extension Tuesday, a bipartisan proposal being pushed by Reps. Jen Kiggans (R-Va.) and Tom Suozzi (D-N.Y.), and other Republicans seen as vulnerable in next year’s midterm elections. 

Jeffries said a one-year extension is a “nonstarter” that won’t get Democratic support.  

“To think that Democrats are going to go along with a one-year extension from a group of people — meaning the Republicans — who just permanently extended massive tax breaks for their billionaire donors? It’s a laughable proposition,” he said.

Hours after Trump’s comments Monday, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) released a long post on the social platform X that ripped her party over the subsidies issue.  

“I’m absolutely disgusted that health insurance premiums will DOUBLE if the tax credits expire this year,” Greene wrote, a message that Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) read aloud on the Senate floor Tuesday morning. 

“Rep. Greene is absolutely right,” he said.  

Greene’s criticism was dismissed by Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), who said she was ill-informed. 

“Congresswoman Greene does not serve on the committees of jurisdiction to deal with those specialized issues, and she’s probably not read [in on some of that] because it’s still been sort of in their silos of the people who specialize in those issues,” Johnson told reporters in the Capitol. 

Johnson, who has kept members back in their home districts to up the pressure on Senate Democrats, said House Republicans would discuss the matter further when they return to Washington but added that won’t happen until Democrats reopen the government.  

Congress has extended the enhanced subsidies twice, and Democrats insist they need to do so again, citing estimates that premiums for tens of millions of people will more than double next year.  

A number of GOP voices beyond Greene are interested in an extension, though they think the issue should be handled separately from ending the shutdown.

Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) said he wants to extend the tax credits and lower premiums, but he doesn’t agree with Democratic “hostage-taking.” 

“I think this is distinct question from the government shutdown, which I continue to be totally amazed that Democrats are doing this and they’re dragging this on this long. But if your question is, ‘Do we need to do something on subsidies?’ I think we do,” Hawley said.  

“We can’t just allow the credits to expire and allow people’s premiums to double. I mean, it’s like over 400,000 people in Missouri.” 

Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) said he was open to a discussion on extending the enhanced subsidies, but Democrats misjudged the situation by thinking a shutdown was the only way those discussions could happen.

“I’m always trying to find some sort of consensus. But the Democrats, Chuck Schumer, they all missed, they misjudged, they executed poorly. They need to recover from that,” Tillis said.  

Still, extending the subsidies would divide the GOP, as many conservatives argue an extension is too expensive. The Congressional Budget Office estimated it would cost about $35 billion per year — though Democrats counter that number could be waved away using the same budgetary estimates that Republicans used to score the tax cut law.  

In addition, GOP opponents of the enhanced subsidies argue they are relics of the COVID-19 era that are no longer needed and are rife with fraud.  

As proof, Republicans cite examples of unscrupulous insurance brokers fraudulently enrolling Americans in fully subsidized plans who shouldn’t be eligible.  

Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.) mentioned the reported fraud during an interview at The Hill “Health Next Summit” on Tuesday. 

“We have to address the fraud, and we have to address the true problem, [which] is that the Affordable Care Act is not affordable,” Marshall said.  

Speaking to reporters later at the Capitol, Marshall did not directly shut the door to extending the enhanced subsidies. 

“Look, I think I’m willing to talk about any of it. There’s 15 different knobs we can turn here,” Marshall said. “We got to address the fraud, though, at a minimum.” 

Schumer has insisted his side is winning the political battle, even as the shutdown drags on, because they are forcing Republicans to talk about health care  

“More than 80 percent of Americans agree with Democrats to extend the tax credits. And Johnson is in a pickle,” Schumer said during a Tuesday press conference. “A week or two ago, he didn’t want to talk about it. Now he finds he has to talk about it, forced by the American people, because they care so much about the issue.” 

Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) also noted the change in GOP messaging and slammed Republicans for refusing to negotiate.  

“I know Republicans would rather not talk about health care — but Democrats are forcing them to talk about health care. Because when Republicans insist they will talk about health care ‘later,’ they know perfectly well that will be too late,” Murray said.