CNN’s Casey Hunt Questions Sen. Ruben Gallego on Health Care Subsidies Amid Shutdown

On Tuesday, CNN host Casey Hunt engaged Democratic Senator Ruben Gallego from Arizona regarding his party’s position on health care subsidies. Following the government shutdown on October 1, Democrats are holding firm on reopening it unless Republicans agree to extend the expired Obamacare premium subsidies. During an episode of “Arena with Casey Hunt,” Hunt pointed out that Democrats have historically emphasized the necessity of preserving legislative norms. Yet, she argued that this very principle seems to be at risk as they push for the extension of these subsidies.

Hunt challenged Gallego by asking, “Why is it right to do that all of a sudden?” She reflected on how the approach used to be viewed differently within the Democratic Party. Gallego replied, “It’s Donald Trump. You’re talking about the norms of the Donald Trump era.”

Hunt highlighted that Democrats once insisted on preserving political norms but seem ready to overlook them for the sake of policy goals. “But Democrats have spent far too much time discussing how incredibly important it actually is to maintain these norms,” she noted.

Gallego responded, arguing that in the Trump era, traditional rules have been disregarded. “It’s all out the window, Casey,” he said. “This is a guy who is extorting people. He’s literally breaking every rule. We’re not going to go back and follow the norms when we know that 24 million people are at risk of doubling their premiums. The fact is, the president and everyone expects us to act according to these old norms.”

Hunt further implied that Democrats are partly responsible for the current issues, prompting her to ask, “But didn’t the Democrats set in the bill that you passed that these subsidies would expire?”

Gallego explained, “At the time, when we passed this bill as part of the Anti-Inflation Act, we were trying our best to hope that our Republican colleagues would understand that raising people’s premiums is a bad thing. It’s unfortunate that they don’t see it that way, but it’s also not my job to make their job easier.”

Senate Democrats remain united in blocking Republican attempts to resolve the shutdown, with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer spearheading multiple filibusters. Despite earlier Republican promises to end the shutdown when they were in the minority, Democrats are stating they won’t support a funding deal that leaves out the extension of Obamacare subsidies or other key priorities.