U.S. Senator John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), Senate Majority Whip, addressed the Senate regarding a recent editorial from The Washington Post that criticized the Democratic Party’s approach to the ongoing government shutdown debate.
Barrasso referred to the editorial titled “The shutdown conversation no one wants,” highlighting its criticism of Democrats’ strategy. He quoted the editorial: “Democrats have demanded that Republicans agree to extend the covid-era insurance subsidies without proposing any way to pay for it. The Congressional Budget Office estimates this will cost $350 billion over the next decade.” Barrasso emphasized that these remarks came from The Washington Post Editorial Board, not Republican sources.
He argued that Democrats are avoiding discussion about funding for these subsidies and described Obamacare as a failed system. According to Barrasso, “Obamacare is broken. Obamacare is a failure. Now, Democrats are holding the American people hostage to prop it up.”
Barrasso also criticized what he called “the Biden Bonus COVID Payment,” saying they were introduced as temporary measures in 2021 and extended in 2022 but are now being pushed by Democrats to become permanent at a significant cost. He stated, “They set an end date for the end of this year. Now, they are demanding that these permanent become permanent – at a cost of $350 billion. That is unacceptable.”
He further claimed that the current system has issues with waste and abuse, alleging that even high-income families can qualify and that there is little oversight or accountability: “There are no premiums, no deductibles, no income limit, and no accountability. Even families making $500,000 a year qualify.”
Barrasso concluded his remarks by asserting that public opinion and media sentiment have shifted away from supporting Democratic proposals: “The American people know it. TheWashington Post knows it. Democrats lost the election. They lost their media allies. And now, they’ve lost the argument.”
