Democrats escalated their shutdown rhetoric Wednesday as Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) warned that Americans would die if her party agreed to reopen the government without extracting healthcare concessions from Republicans.
Warren declared that Republicans were using the shutdown as cover to avoid addressing what she described as catastrophic healthcare consequences.
She painted a grim picture, suggesting seniors in nursing homes, infants with mothers needing care, and families already burdened by high premiums would all be left vulnerable.
According to Warren, half of nursing home residents suffer from Alzheimer’s and could be thrown out under the GOP proposal.
Elizabeth Warren: "Knock 15 million people off their coverage, drive up the cost of coverage for everyone else, close rural hospitals, close community healthcare centers — that's the Republican plan, because you know what the real heart of it was? They gave away a trillion… pic.twitter.com/0JiRTzrixG
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) October 2, 2025
She warned that millions were receiving notices of premium hikes directly because of Republicans.
“They’re going to be people who are going to have to make decisions about whether to make rent or pay for health insurance,” she said.
She added that others might simply abandon coverage, with some losing their lives because of it.
Warren claimed Democrats were unified in refusing to back down, portraying the fight as essential.
She said Republicans would rather shut the government down than give relief to families struggling with costs, while she insisted Democrats were prepared to fight.
“They’re going to be people who are going to die because of these decisions. And that more than anything else, the Republicans don’t want to talk about,” she remarked.
“They [would] rather shut down the government than help Americans who are just trying to get their costs under control.”
While Warren delivered her warning, Republicans pointed to signs of cracks forming within the Democratic ranks.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, appearing on Newsmax, said several centrist Democrats had quietly signaled their unease and desire to end the standoff.
He noted that Democrats’ leadership refused to budge even after millions of Medicare recipients lost telehealth and home care services at the stroke of midnight when funding lapsed.
Thune described Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer as trapped by far-left activist groups, making compromise almost impossible.
He said Schumer had cut deals with “left-wing special interest groups” and that it boxed him into a corner.
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According to Thune, moderate Democrats were quietly looking for an “off-ramp” to escape what he called the “box canyon” Schumer had led them into.
Thune told host Greta Van Susteren that Schumer once warned against using shutdowns as political leverage, but had now reversed course for political gain.
Thune added that Democrats were abandoning long-held positions, noting that Schumer previously insisted on keeping the government open regardless of disagreements.
He said what Democrats were doing now was purely political maneuvering.
“Those are statements he was making in the past, and they’re statements a lot of other Democrats were making in the past who now have a completely different position when the shoe’s on the other foot. But this is all about politics,” Thune commented.
Republicans, he pointed out, wanted to keep the government running and continue the appropriations process responsibly.
Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-TX) admitted on NewsNation that Schumer might feel pressure to show something to the Democratic base.
Cuellar said while he could not speak directly for Schumer, he himself was worried about constituents in his district, saying more than 113,000 people he represents would see their premiums double.
Vice President JD Vance also weighed in during a White House press conference.
He accused Schumer of bowing to radicals in his party, warning that the minority leader was more concerned about protecting himself from a potential primary challenge by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York than governing.
Democrats spent years giving taxpayer-funded healthcare to illegal aliens and, as promised, President Trump put a stop to it.
Now, Senate Democrats are shutting down the government and holding the economy hostage because they want to reinstate those benefits for illegal aliens. pic.twitter.com/aqXJJFW4yL
— JD Vance (@JDVance) October 1, 2025
“The reason why the American people’s government is shut down is because Chuck Schumer is listening to the far-left radicals in his party, because he’s terrified of a primary challenge,” Vance stated.
Ocasio-Cortez was asked on MSNBC whether she planned to challenge Schumer in 2028.
She dodged directly answering, instead insisting Democrats must hold firm. “They want us to blink first, and we have too much to save,” she pivoted.
The White House also suggested Democrats’ shutdown strategy was about forcing healthcare benefits for illegal immigrants.
Vance said Democrats should agree to reopen the government first and then debate healthcare policy separately.
“We think we can open the government, then have the conversation about health care policy to best fit the needs of the American people,” he stated.
Rep. Jimmy Panetta (D-CA) pushed back when asked by NewsNation if Democrats were stalling the process to cover illegal immigrants.
He admitted that while some state-level programs provide benefits, federal law bars illegal immigrants from Medicaid and ACA benefits.
He said some exceptions exist, such as emergency care and coverage for children or pregnant women, often funded through state-level programs.
Still, Panetta conceded there was “a certain very small percentage” of funding at issue related to those here unlawfully.
On PBS NewsHour, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries sought to shift blame back to Republicans, despite Democrats withholding their votes on a funding resolution.
Jeffries argued that Republicans, who currently control the government with Trump in the White House, could find a deal if they wanted.
He blasted them for passing a massive bill that slashed Medicaid and gave tax breaks to the wealthy.
According to Jeffries, if Republicans could pass that legislation, they could also pass a spending deal without Democrats.
Asked how Democrats could pin the shutdown on Republicans when they were refusing to support a clean bill, Jeffries claimed Democrats were the minority in both chambers and that Republicans were steering the country toward bankruptcy.
“What Republicans have consistently done throughout their time in office, they passed this one big ugly bill on a party-line vote, used the reconciliation process to be able to accomplish their objectives, largest cut to Medicaid in American history, stealing food from the mouths of hungry children and seniors and veterans,” Jeffries claimed.
