Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says Senate Democrats who voted to end the federal government shutdown approved a “bad deal.”
“It’s a bad deal. Everyday life – making it better and more affordable – must always be our bottom line,” Buttigieg posted on X.
He said holding out for government healthcare subsidies to reduce the cost of coverage for Americans insured under the Affordable Care Act is a necessity.
“For months, I’ve been hearing from people bracing for their health insurance bills to skyrocket – so much that some will lose coverage altogether,” Buttigieg said.
Buttigieg said some people don’t want to know how ending the government subsidies will affect their lives.
“Some say they simply haven’t even opened their letter yet, dreading the bad news.
“Any deal that fails to address this directly is a bad deal,” he wrote.
In a subsequent post, Buttigieg suggested that supporters of Democrats need to step up their pressure on the White House to approve the party’s agenda. “From street marches to court battles to the ballot box – we’ve challenged the power of this exceptionally unpopular president.”
And when the effort does not produce, he said, push harder.
“The lesson from each success we’ve had is that we need to ramp the political pressure up, always up, not back down, now more than ever,” Buttigieg said.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said he is unsure whether the Senate will vote Monday to fund the government after moderate Democrats agreed to move forward without a guaranteed extension of healthcare subsidies.
“Lawmakers are still in a holding pattern,” Thune told reporters Monday.
The measure advanced late Sunday in a 60-40 procedural vote, with eight Democrats joining most Republicans.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., voted against the bill because it did not fully address the healthcare funding issue.
Thune said it would be ideal “for us to be able to finish it today and send it to the House” and “without a lot of disruption or delay or fanfare.”
Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., said Sunday that an agreement was reached with Thune to ensure a vote on the healthcare subsidies in December.
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