Time is quickly running out for Congress to work out a spending bill, and while President Trump appears to have backed down from his dangerous insistence on including funding for a border wall in the must-pass legislation, the fight isn’t over yet.
As negotiations continue, Republicans are still threatening critical funding needs like Affordable Care Act subsidies. If funding were cut off for these subsidies, it would lead to millions of Americans losing health coverage.
But that hasn’t stopped Republicans from attempting to use people’s access to life-saving care as a bargaining chip. As President Trump coldly tweeted on Sunday: “ObamaCare is in serious trouble. The Dems need big money to keep it going – otherwise it dies far sooner than anyone would have thought.”
ObamaCare is in serious trouble. The Dems need big money to keep it going - otherwise it dies far sooner than anyone would have thought.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 23, 2017
The prospect of sabotaging everyday Americans’ access to health care shouldn’t be on the table to begin with—and the fact that it is speaks volumes about the current state of the Republican party. Democrats are right to stand strong against this reckless bullying. Holding the functioning of the government hostage to try and ram through an extreme agenda is irresponsible and wrong.