U.S. Senator John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), serving as Senate Majority Whip, delivered remarks on the Senate floor criticizing Democratic efforts to extend certain healthcare subsidies and address ongoing government funding issues. Barrasso argued that these actions amount to “organized theft of taxpayers” and are intended to support what he described as a failing program.
The speech comes amid an ongoing government shutdown, which Barrasso referred to as the “Schumer Shutdown,” now in its 28th day. He accused Democrats of using the situation for political gain, quoting Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer as saying, “Every day gets better for us.” Barrasso also cited a House Democrat Whip who reportedly said, “Of course there will be families that are going to suffer… but it is one of the few leverage times we have.”
Barrasso criticized Democratic proposals that would provide taxpayer-funded healthcare to undocumented immigrants, reduce funding for rural hospitals by $50 billion, and add $1.5 trillion in new permanent spending. Drawing on his background as a physician in Wyoming, Barrasso stated: “I want Americans to have high quality, affordable healthcare. Right now, this is impossible because healthcare in America is broken. Democrats broke it. They broke it the day they passed Obamacare.”
He referenced recent editorials from major newspapers: “‘Obamacare is pricey,’” from The New York Times and “‘The real problem is that the Affordable Care Act was never actually affordable,’” from The Washington Post Editorial Board.
Barrasso pointed out that Democrats expanded subsidies during the pandemic—referred to as “Biden Bonus COVID payments”—which were originally meant to be temporary and linked to the public health emergency. He stated: “They first scheduled these payments to end in 2022… they then extended the payments through the end of this year. They set the expiration date. They created this cliff.”
According to Barrasso, even after these bonus payments expire, federal support for premiums will remain substantial: “Even after the Biden Bonus COVID payments expire, the federal government will still pay for 80 percent of the average Obamacare enrollee’s premium.” He alleged waste and fraud within these programs: “In 2024, 12 million enrollees got insurance they never used… In 29 states, more people are claiming full benefits than are eligible… 6.4 million people were improperly enrolled this year… At least 1.6 million people are duel-enrolled in both Medicaid and Obamacare – which is not allowed.”
He concluded with a call for Democrats to accept a clean continuing resolution before further negotiations on healthcare reform take place: “‘Republicans will not negotiate with hostage-takers. Our troops, women, infants, and children should not be leverage for Democrats to save their failed programs.’”
Barrasso also noted recent calls from labor unions such as the American Federation of Government Employees urging both parties to pass a clean resolution and reopen government operations.
