TRANSCRIPT: Leader Schumer And Leader Jeffries Press Gaggle Regarding Republicans’ Unwillingness To Negotiate A Bipartisan Deal To Protect Americans’ Healthcare

Washington, D.C. – Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) today held a press conference on the Trump Republican Shutdown and the unwillingness from Trump and Congressional Republicans to address the healthcare crisis facing the country. Below are Senator Schumer’s remarks, which can also be viewed here:

Leader Schumer: The American people are in a crisis in healthcare, and we are fighting for them. We are on their side. The American people are seeing that we are on their side doing everything we can to get the Republicans to negotiate and address this crisis. And it is devastating. People every day are getting notices from their insurance companies in their states. The average American on ACA could see their costs double, even triple. And that's in red states, that's in blue states, that's in every state.

I just talked about a person in the North Country, Stefanik's district, who now pays $2,800 for health care. He’ll have to pay $20,000. What is a family going to do when they see that to have healthcare, to keep their health insurance, they've got to come up with $20,000? What do they do? What do they tell their children, that they can't go to the doctors they've been seeing? What do they do if someone has cancer and is cut off from treatment? What do they do if their hospital closes and another hospital is 100 miles away and they can't get to their doctors?

So the American people are facing one of the most devastating crises they have faced in terms of cost, and we still have not heard crickets out of any negotiation with Johnson or with Thune. The Republicans are on the defensive, they keep changing their stories and changing their arguments, but we are on the side of the American people.

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Reporter: Thank you. Apparently, Leader Thune has said that he's open to holding a vote at a set date. So, two questions. One, are you open to that? What do you as Democrats need to see? And I think that's my two questions.

Schumer: Look, we're not negotiating in public, plain and simple, and Leader Thune has not come to me with any proposal at this point.

Reporter: Leader Schumer, do you have a good enough idea of how this defense bill will be packaged with possibly Labor HHS to allow Democrats to vote to get on that defense bill today?

Schumer: Right now, the only thing that is on the floor is just the defense bill. Thune needs unanimous consent to add anything else to it. We don't even know if he'll get that. It's always been unacceptable to Democrats to do the defense bill without other bills that have so many things that are important to the American people in terms of healthcare, in terms of housing, in terms of safety.

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Reporter: The Republicans continue to say – Republicans continue to say that this shutdown is because you're worried about Ocasio-Cortez and the left. She even said last night that she is not primarying you. How does that make you feel?

Schumer: Look, the bottom line is we are fighting for the American people. We see the anguish they face everywhere we go, in our districts, in our states. People are not just, oh, this is something new and not so good. They just think it's horrible. What am I going to do? Another person I met, the kid has cancer and the treatment has been cut off, the research has been cut off. We are fighting for the American people. The Republicans can talk all the political stuff they want. We're on the side of the American people because they need help.

Leader Jeffries: From the very beginning of this crisis, Senate Democrats and House Democrats have made clear we are fighting to address the healthcare crisis that Republicans have created. The largest cut to Medicaid in American history, as part of the Republican One Big Ugly Bill that hurts everyday Americans in order to benefit their billionaire donors with massive tax breaks. Hospitals, nursing homes, and community-based health centers are closing all across America because of Republican policies. That's hurting everyday Americans. Their refusal to extend the Affordable Care Act tax credits is going to result in tens of millions of people in Republican-held states, Democratic states, purple states, all across the country, it doesn't matter. Tens of millions of people are going to experience dramatically increased premiums, co-pays, and deductibles. It's going to make healthcare unaffordable for people. They will be unable to see their doctor or take their children to see a doctor when they need one. That's not acceptable in this country. This is the wealthiest country in the history of the world. So, Democrats are standing up to address the cost of living crisis that Republican policies, like the Trump tariffs, have made worse, and we're standing up in defense of the healthcare of the American people.

Reporter: Mr. Leader, have you – or either of you as leaders – have you received a Gang of 8 briefing on this CIA activity in Venezuela?

Schumer: No, and it's typical of this administration and this Republican House and Senate. They try to just go at it alone on everything. That doesn't work. That's not the American way. That's not what the American people want. They want us to come together and come up with bipartisan solutions, and they have failed every step of the way. On the extension of the Affordable Care Act, we asked them to vote three times to extend it. They voted no. And the Republican Congressmen and Senators are feeling the heat from their constituencies because this crisis is so bad. And so you see them squirming and changing their positions and not always agreeing with one another. We are steadfast. We're on the side of the American people because healthcare is one of the most important things. When you ask people, their number one concern is cost, and Trump's done a lot to raise their costs on tariffs and on heating and grocery prices are still high, but the number one issue in terms of cost to the American people now is healthcare, and it's a matter of life and death. A matter of life and death.

Reporter: You talked about finding bipartisan cooperation. There was a bipartisan deal in the Senate on this defense appropriations bill that passed overwhelmingly out of committee. If it's on the floor today, why won't Senate Democrats vote for this?

Schumer: Because we need to make sure they have, first of all, we have always believed, we believe that we need a strong defense, but we believe we need strong healthcare. We need strong safety for the American people. We need strong programs that help them with so many other issues — mental health and education — and we have always negotiated these agreements, these appropriations agreements in a bipartisan way. Once again, they're just going at it alone.

Jeffries: Their approach has been my way or the highway from the very beginning, and we just continue to maintain the position. We will sit down, have a bipartisan discussion to reopen the government, to address the Republican healthcare crisis, and to enact a spending agreement that actually makes life better for the American people, because the American people are suffering under these policies that have made life more expensive for them. Trump promised to lower costs on day one. Costs haven't gone down — they've gone up. Electricity prices skyrocketing through the roof, housing still too expensive, grocery costs too high, and now they want to stick it to the American people in terms of these healthcare premiums. It's all unacceptable. Cancel the cuts, lower the costs, save healthcare.

Schumer: And just on a procedural issue, so you all know, they need unanimous consent to add something to the defense bill. They don't have it.

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