Dem leaders push to reverse Trump cuts in shutdown fight
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Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries at a press conference at the U.S. Capitol on June 11. Photo: Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images
Democratic congressional leaders are landing on the reversal of Medicaid cuts in the One Big, Beautiful Bill as one of their primary demands for helping to avert a government shutdown.
Why it matters: While Republicans control both chambers of Congress and the White House, they will need at least the votes of some Senate Democrats to pass a government funding bill.
- Republicans are likely to pursue a continuing resolution — a temporary measure to keep the government funded at current spending levels — ahead of the Sept. 30 deadline.
- Democrats feel this is their best point of leverage to hamstring President Trump's legislative agenda and his assault on the federal bureaucracy.
Driving the news: House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) wrote to their GOP counterparts asking that the four "immediately meet upon our return to Congress next week" to discuss government funding.
- "The government funding issue must be resolved in a bipartisan way. That is the only viable path forward," they wrote to House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.).
- And, they added: "Unfortunately, it appears the Republican-controlled Congress lacks a plan to address the mounting healthcare crisis your budget reconciliation bill has set in motion."
What they're saying: Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), the progressive ranking member of the Senate Budget Committee, signaled her support for the leaders' strategy in a post on X.
- "If Republicans want Democrats to provide votes to fund the Trump administration, they can start by restoring the health care that they ripped away to finance more tax handouts for billionaires," she wrote.
- "This fight is about saving health care and lowering costs for millions of Americans."
Between the lines: Jeffries and Schumer said they want to know how Thune and Johnson propose to "avoid unnecessary harm to the American people" and "address the looming healthcare crisis caused by Republican policies."
- The comments are a clear indication that they plan to demand increased funding for Medicaid as part of government funding negotiations.
- They also asked whether the Trump administration has signaled plans to send a request for additional rescissions after clawing back funds for USAID and public broadcasting last month.
- Spokespeople for Thune and Johnson did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Yes, but: Democrats have been down this road before. In March, Schumer lent Republicans the necessary support to pass a continuing resolution despite not receiving any concessions.
- He faced intense blowback from fellow Democratic lawmakers and his party's liberal grassroots base, but has since maintained he made the right decision.
