Luján Statement on Vote to Keep the Government Open, Address Looming Health Care Affordability Crisis

Trump: “Don’t even bother dealing with them”

Vought: “The appropriations process has to be less bipartisan”

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) issued the following statement after Senate Republicans voted against Congressional Democrats’ proposal to keep the government open and permanently extend the enhanced Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies, among other critical provisions:

“Congressional Republicans just blocked legislation to keep the government open – steering our country toward a shutdown. Costs for families are skyrocketing while millions of Americans face the largest health insurance premium hike in more than a decade, and billions for schools, farmers, and medical research are being withheld from our communities.

“Our proposal would have kept the federal government open and prevented millions of Americans from being hit with the largest health insurance premium increases in over a decade. By rejecting it, Republicans are guaranteeing that families will soon begin receiving notices warning their premiums are about to skyrocket.

“The reality is clear: Republicans’ partisan strategy has brought us to the brink of a shutdown. Once again, they are following the demands of President Trump and Russell Vought to make this process ‘less bipartisan’ and to block bipartisan negotiations. If Republicans need our votes, they need to work with Democrats to pass a bipartisan funding bill.”

The short-term continuing resolution (CR) introduced by Congressional Democrats:

• Keeps the government funded through October 31 to avert a Republican shutdown and allow bipartisan negotiations to continue over full-year spending bills that ensure Congress—not President Trump and Russ Vought—determines how taxpayer dollars are spent.
  • This includes allowing more time for talks on the first three spending bills that conference negotiations have already begun over: the Agriculture-FDA, Legislative Branch, and Military Construction-VA spending bills.
• Addresses the health care crisis that President Trump and Republican lawmakers have single-handedly created by:
  • Reversing Republicans’ devastating Medicaid cuts and attacks on the Affordable Care Act in their Big Ugly Betrayal. 
  • Preventing Americans’ health care premiums from skyrocketing by extending the premium tax credits that help over 20 million Americans afford health insurance.
• Addresses President Trump’s illegal pocket rescission and protects any spending agreement from unilateral partisan cuts.
• Provides additional funding to enhance security protections for Members of Congress, executive branch officials, and the judiciary.

A fact sheet on the funding bill is available HERE. 

A section-by-section summary of the CR is available HERE.

Identical text of the legislation as introduced in the Senate and the House is available HERE.