Democrat senator makes stunning admission about Obamacare failures



Democratic Sen. Peter Welch of Vermont made a shocking admission on the Senate floor while trying to defend the Democrat shutdown.

Congress is now well into a record-long government shutdown, and it all started when Democrats demanded an extension on Obamacare subsidies that are set to expire at the end of the year. Even though this Obamacare extension is at the core of Democrats' professed opposition to reopening the government, even Welch acknowledged the failures of the very system they want to uphold.

'Only three Democrats have crossed the aisle.'

"I owe you an answer on why it is I'm standing here today asking to extend something that was temporary," Welch said. "Here's the reason."

"We did fail to bring down the cost of health care."

The Affordable Care Act, aka Obamacare, was signed into law in 2010 and began to be implemented a few years later.

RELATED: Trump admin agrees to partially fund food stamps as Democrat shutdown approaches record

Photo by Eric Lee/Getty Images

In addition to propping up a flawed health care system, Democrats have also insisted on passing their own $1.5 trillion spending bill that would reverse every legislative accomplishment from President Donald Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act as soon as they reopened the government.

Meanwhile, Senate Republicans have held over a dozen votes on their clean continuing resolution that would reopen and fund the government at Biden-era spending levels that Democrats overwhelmingly voted for in the past.

RELATED: Trump urges Senate to deploy the 'Nuclear Option' on filibuster

Allison Robbert/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Despite Republicans' attempt to pass a clean nonpartisan funding bill, only three Democrats have crossed the aisle and voted to reopen the government. Because of the 60-vote threshold, Republicans need at least five more Senate Democrats to vote in favor of their bill, which seems less and less likely as the shutdown continues.

Because of this stalemate, Trump has repeatedly called for Senate Majority Leader John Thune to eliminate the filibuster, which would allow Republicans to pass their funding bill with a simple majority. Thune, a longtime institutionalist, has always defended the filibuster and has been firm about keeping it.

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EXCLUSIVE: Thune Says GOP Needs To Craft ‘Winning Message’ On Economy, Cost Of Living Ahead Of Midterms

Following Democrats’ sweep of key races on Tuesday night, Senate Majority Leader John Thune says he expects Republicans to be laser-focused on affordability issues ahead of next year’s midterm elections. Thune said that while Democrats’ strong electoral performance should be taken with a grain of salt given poor GOP candidate quality in some races, Republicans’ […]

EXCLUSIVE: John Thune Is Defying Trump On The Filibuster. Here’s His Explanation.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune is on a collision course with President Donald Trump over nixing a longstanding legislative tool to end the 36-day government shutdown. Thune, who pledged to defend the filibuster on Day One of his leadership tenure, reiterated on Wednesday that Republicans would not scrap the Senate’s 60-vote threshold to end the […]

EXCLUSIVE: Thune Warns Democrats Against Seizing On Election Results To Keep Shutdown Going

Senate Majority Leader John Thune is warning Democrats from prolonging the government shutdown after they sweept key races in Virginia, New Jersey and California on Tuesday evening. Democrats, emboldened by Tuesday’s favorable election results, are saying they will continue to keep the government shuttered, arguing that the party’s sweep has reinforced their shutdown strategy. Thune […]

Democrat-induced shutdown poised to break record as key programs lapse



The Democrat-induced government shutdown is set to break the record for the longest shutdown in history.

Senate Democrats blocked the GOP's clean funding resolution on September 30, initiating the government shutdown on October 1. Over a month has passed since then, with the shutdown inching toward the 35-day record after over a dozen failed Senate votes.

'REPUBLICANS, BE TOUGH AND SMART!'

If this streak of failed votes continues through midnight Wednesday as expected, the government shutdown will have surpassed the previous record-holding 35-day shutdown from President Donald Trump's first term.

Although neither party has indicated that a deal is on the horizon, Trump has urged Republicans to deploy the nuclear option to bring the shutdown to a close.

RELATED: Trump urges Senate to deploy the 'Nuclear Option' on filibuster

Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

"TERMINATE THE FILIBUSTER, NOT JUST FOR THE SHUTDOWN, BUT FOR EVERYTHING ELSE," Trump said in a Truth Social post. "WE WILL GET ALL OF OUR COMMON SENSE POLICIES APPROVED (VOTER ID, ANYONE?) AND MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN! REMEMBER, THE DEMOCRATS WILL DO IT IMMEDIATELY, AS SOON AS THEY GET THE CHANCE. OUR DOING IT WILL NOT GIVE THEM THE CHANCE."

"REPUBLICANS, BE TOUGH AND SMART! THE DEMS ARE CRAZED LUNATICS, THEY WILL NOT OPEN UP OUR COUNTRY NO MATTER HOW MANY PEOPLE ARE IRREPARABLY HARMED!"

Trump's calls to eliminate the filibuster would allow Republicans to pass their funding bill with a simple majority as opposed to the 60-vote threshold currently in place. Only three Democrats have consistently crossed the aisle and voted with Republicans to reopen the government, falling short of the 60 votes needed.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, an institutionalist, has always been against eliminating the filibuster. Despite pressure from the president, Thune maintains that his "position on the importance of the legislative filibuster is unchanged."

RELATED: 'Unfit for the gavel': House GOPs sound off on Judge Boasberg, stand with senators in calling for impeachment

Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

While Congress shows no signs of progress, millions of Americans lost key government benefits like food assistance programs that lapsed over the weekend. Programs like SNAP affect citizens across the country, but Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins is taking the opportunity to clean house, ensuring illegal aliens are not taking advantage of the program.

"I'm glad to see the Trump administration is working to get to the bottom of why 41 million people are on SNAP and why this program exploded on Joe Biden's watch," said Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, who has repeatedly voted with Democrats against the funding bill, in a post on X. "It's time to root out the waste, fraud, and abuse."

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Trump’s Call To Axe Filibuster Likely Dead On Arrival In Senate

President Donald Trump’s call to scrap the legislative filibuster is likely to fall on deaf ears among Senate Republicans. Trump rattled off two Truth Social posts on Thursday evening urging Republicans to circumvent Democrats’ opposition to ending the 31-day shutdown by eliminating the filibuster, a procedural rule requiring most legislation to obtain 60 votes — […]

Trump urges Senate to deploy the 'Nuclear Option' on filibuster



President Donald Trump is urging Senate leadership to initiate the "nuclear option" to finally bring the Democrat-induced government shutdown to an end.

Trump called for the Senate to nuke the filibuster one month into the shutdown as Democrats show no signs of flipping. For the last 31 days, all but three Democrats have voted to keep the government closed, leaving the government five votes short of reopening.

'We should avoid that at all costs.'

"It is now time for the Republicans to play their 'TRUMP CARD,' and go for what is called the Nuclear Option — Get rid of the Filibuster, and get rid of it, NOW!" Trump said in a Truth Social post Thursday night.

"Now WE are in power, and if we did what we should be doing, it would IMMEDIATELY end this ridiculous, Country destroying 'SHUT DOWN,'" Trump added.

Trump also claimed that if Republicans do not end the filibuster, the Democrats will someday.

"If the Democrats ever came back into power, which would be made easier for them if the Republicans are not using the Great Strength and Policies made available to us by ending the Filibuster, the Democrats will exercise their rights, and it will be done in the first day they take office, regardless of whether or not we do it," Trump warned.

Trump noted that just two senators — Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona — prevented Democrats from ending the filibuster during Biden's term in office.

RELATED: Senate Republicans betray Trump, help Democrats try to block tariffs

Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

Although Trump's demands often dictate the party's next move, nuking the filibuster has not been a popular play among Republicans.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) has been a strong institutionalist and vocal defender of the filibuster, which essentially gives the minority party veto power on legislation unless 60 senators agree to pass it. In the early days of the shutdown, Thune admitted that nuking the filibuster was a "possibility" but strongly advised against it.

“Well, there’s always that possibility,” Thune told reporters. “We put up with it, obviously, in his first term as president. I could see at some point that being a potential conversation. But that’s not good for anybody. ... We should avoid that at all costs.”

Thune's Republican colleague Sen. John Curtis of Utah similarly cautioned against eliminating the filibuster, saying it "forces us to find common ground in the Senate."

"Power changes hands, but principles shouldn’t," Curtis said in a post on X. "I’m a firm no on eliminating it."

RELATED: 'Unfit for the gavel': House GOPs sound off on Judge Boasberg, stand with senators in calling for impeachment

Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

Trump, on the other hand, has a long-standing record criticizing the filibuster. In 2017, Trump called the filibuster a "joke," saying it was "killing" the Republican majority in the Senate at the time.

With no end in sight, the government shutdown could very well surpass the record-breaking 35-day shutdown in Trump's first term.

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Democrats Face Mounting Pressure To End Shutdown — And GOP Says It’s Going To Get Worse

The pain of the 30-day government shutdown is expected to worsen in the coming days, but Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and the vast majority of his Democratic Caucus have thus far refused to fund the government until their demands are met. More than 40 million Americans will not receive federal food aid on Nov. […]

Democrats admit to weaponizing shutdown for ‘leverage’ against GOP while Americans feel the sting



The Democrats’ narrative pinning blame for the government shutdown on Republicans is losing steam.

Left-leaning lawmakers have openly admitted that they are using the impending expiration of SNAP benefits as “leverage” against their GOP counterparts. This tactic has ignited significant backlash, even from those who typically align with them, including CNN anchor Jake Tapper and the American Federation of Government Employees.

‘Who’s winning, who’s losing? Well, 100% America loses with this.’

The fallout is increasing the pressure on congressional Democrats to work across the aisle to pass a clean continuing resolution, averting disruptions for SNAP recipients as benefits are set to lapse this Saturday.

“Republicans control the House, the Senate, and the White House. Frankly, this is our only moment of leverage,” Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.) told C-SPAN on Thursday in reference to the government shutdown. Coons admitted that it was “a very unpleasant tool to use.”

Senate Republicans called Coons’ comments “absolutely deranged.”

“Chris Coons believes that denying Americans their SNAP benefits may be ‘unpleasant,’ but it’s worth doing because it gives Democrats political ‘leverage,’” Republicans wrote.

RELATED: Democrats’ shutdown blame game backfires — even Jake Tapper calls them out on SNAP benefits

John Fetterman. Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

House Democratic Whip Katherine Clark (Mass.) similarly admitted during an interview in mid-October that her party was using the shutdown as leverage.

“Shutdowns are terrible, and of course, there will be families that are going to suffer. We take that responsibility very seriously. But it is one of the few leverage times we have,” Clark stated.

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) told journalist Nicholas Ballasy this week that the shutdown is “the only lever we have.”

Ballasy also asked Sen. John Fetterman (D-Penn.) for his thoughts on the ongoing stalemate. Fetterman was one of the few Democrats to break ranks and vote for Republicans’ proposed continuing resolution.

“I’m not going to describe the lives of millions of Americans as, like, a euphemism, as ‘leverage.’ I mean, this isn’t a political game,” Fetterman told Ballasy on Tuesday.

“Who’s winning, who’s losing? Well, 100% America loses with this,” he concluded.

RELATED: Democrats brush off pressure from federal workers’ union to end government shutdown

John Thune. Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) used his time on the Senate floor on Wednesday to call out Democrat lawmakers for their controversial admissions.

Thune mentioned a comment from Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), who previously said, “Every day gets better for us,” when referring to the shutdown.

“Lest there be any question about who is responsible for shutting the government down, make no mistake about it: These guys are the ones who are out there bragging about it ‘getting better for us every single day,’ or, ‘we have more leverage now,’” Thune stated.

Thune explained that 60 votes are required to pass the clean continuing resolution, noting that it has failed 13 times with only 55 votes.

“So, the question is, are there five people over there with a backbone? Five courageous Democrats?” he added.

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Senate Republicans betray Trump, help Democrats try to block tariffs



A handful of Senate Republicans defied President Donald Trump in a contentious vote to block the administration's tariffs on Brazil.

The Senate narrowly passed a resolution Tuesday night to zero out Trump's 50% tariffs on Brazilian imports in a 52-48 vote. Five Republicans — Sens. Susan Collins of Maine, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Rand Paul of Kentucky, and Thom Tillis of North Carolina — aided all 47 Democrats to pass the resolution.

The resolution is likely to die in the House before ever making it to Trump's desk.

This rebuke comes from Trump's most vocal critics in the Senate, all of whom have bucked the administration in the past.

Paul has repeatedly voted against Republican funding bills, including the continuing resolution that would reopen the government, all but guaranteeing he is disinvited from many White House events his colleagues attend. Tillis, who announced he would be retiring following this term, also voted against the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Collins, Murkowski, and McConnell have been a thorn in Trump's side, repeatedly voting against key nominees.

RELATED: Vance casts tiebreaking Senate vote after Republicans join Democrats to tank Trump's tariffs

Anna Rose Layden/Bloomberg via Getty Images

The resolution is likely to die in the House before ever making it to Trump's desk. Even if Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) were to hold a vote on the resolution, the Republican majority would likely side with the administration.

Notably, this is not the first time Republicans defied the White House to block Trump's tariffs.

Vice President JD Vance had to cast a tiebreaking vote back in May to block a similar resolution that would have halted Trump's tariffs. At the time, Murkowski, Collins, and Paul were the three lawmakers who went against the grain.

RELATED: Vance casts tiebreaking vote after Republicans betray Trump's 'big, beautiful bill'

Photo by Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images

"Farmers are hurting. Inflation is squeezing every worker. And tariffs are making it worse," Paul said in a recent post on X. "We can’t print enough money to paper over bad policy."

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