As the threat of a shutdown loomed this week, Republican leaders united behind a message: They weren’t going to cut a deal that would let Democrats provide health care to undocumented immigrants.
This talking point, which has been repeated by President Donald Trump down through rank-and-file members of Congress, largely skirts the biggest issue for Democrats — extending as soon as possible the enhanced health care premium subsidies that expire at the end of the year. But it may be tangentially related to a similar concession wanted by Democrats, and that may be driving the GOP reaction.
“If it seems like the only sentence that Republicans can form these days consists of a noun, verb and illegal immigrant, that’s because they have to resort to outright lies to defend their truly God-awful health care policies,” Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., said this week.
