LIVE: House Democratic Leader Speaks to Press on Capitol Steps

Good afternoon, everyone. This is day 23 of the Trump-Republicans shutdown, and House Republicans remain on vacation. They've canceled votes for four consecutive weeks and are on the verge of canceling votes next week because Republicans have zero interest in reopening the government. They have zero interest in finding a bipartisan path forward to enact a spending agreement that actually meets the needs of the American people, and Republicans have zero interest in addressing the health care crisis that they've created. Tomorrow, hundreds of thousands of hard-working federal employees will miss a paycheck and are going to struggle to be able to provide the basic necessities to live and survive. But Donald Trump is heading out of the country, House Republicans remain on vacation, and Senate Republicans continue to offer no solutions relative to a bipartisan agreement that actually meets the needs of the American people. In just a matter of a week or so, tens of millions of Americans are going to wake up to the reality because of the open enrollment period beginning on November 1st that their premiums, copays, and deductibles are about to explode. In many cases, everyday Americans having to pay $1,000 or $2,000 more per month in order to access health insurance. That's affordable. And many people are going to have to go without the ability to see a doctor. The Republican health care crisis grows more urgent by the day, and yet Donald Trump and Republicans continue to be nowhere to be found. They're not taking these issues seriously. They continue to keep the government shut down and hurt everyday Americans. Why? It's apparent to the American people that when it comes to the Republican approach, cruelty is the point. Questions? There are ongoing conversations in Illinois, but there is no congressional map that would move forward that would dilute the representation of Black and Latino communities in Illinois or in any other state that is currently held by Democrats. Hey, Leader Jeffress. Jelena Jones running for Sylvester Trump's seat in Texas. She said on CNN, if you hit me in my face, I'm not going to punch you back in your face. I'm going to go across your neck. Is rhetoric like that appropriate, particularly in light of the threat against your life? Yeah, I'm unfamiliar with the context in which that was said. But let me just say, of course, again, political violence that we've seen in this country intensify throughout this year is unacceptable in any form against anyone for any reason. I have not had an opportunity to see the mayoral debate. I did see the end of the Knicks game, but I expect to have a conversation with the Democratic nominee at some point between this moment that we're in right now and early voting, which begins, I think, in the early part of Saturday. What are your thoughts on Speaker Johnson bringing back to Washington? It seems to me that Speaker Johnson has no intention of bringing Republicans back to Washington to do their jobs because they're the ones that shut down the government. They can't justify why they shut the government down. We as Democrats have made clear we want to sit down with anyone, any time, any place in order to reopen the government, stand by our hardworking federal civil servants, find a bipartisan path forward toward a spending agreement that actually meets the needs of the American people and actually improves the quality of life of the American people and at the same time decisively address the Republican health care crisis. We've also made clear as House Democrats that we will consider in good faith anything bipartisan that emerges from the Senate. Has any member of the Republican leadership been able to sense that threat? Not a single Republican has reached out either from the House, the Senate, or the White House in connection with the death threat and the arrest, but that does not surprise me in terms of the environment that we're in because these individuals, these extremists, they can't justify the fact that Donald Trump pardoned hundreds of violent felons. On his first day in office, people who brutally beat police officers, including seriously injuring, on these Capitol steps, 140. And then on Donald Trump's first day in office, he pardons these violent felons and then unleashes them on American communities all across the country, and many of them have reoffended. And the Republicans, of course, as they always do, have supported that extreme action, and they just can't simply justify the fact that they've put the safety and well-being of the American people in jeopardy by their reckless actions. Would you say that not hearing from the Speaker, does that indicate a waning of the relationship that you had with him? Does that change the way that you hold the relationship with the Speaker that you haven't had with him? The most important issues for us here in the Congress is to address the quality of life issues for the American people. We need to drive down the high cost of living, and we remain committed to finding a bipartisan path toward doing that in the context of this spending agreement. And, of course, we have to decisively address the Republican health care crisis. For us, this moment is all about the American people. Like, understand the reality of what the American people are confronting right now. Costs are way too high. And we know that Donald Trump and Republicans, they promised to lower costs on day one. That's what they said all of last year. Lied to the American people. Because costs haven't gone down, costs have gone up. Inflation, up. And we're going to see that again tomorrow when the numbers come out. Electricity bills, through the roof. Housing costs, out of control. Grocery costs, way up. Trump tariffs, causing thousands of dollars in additional expense on everyday Americans. And now, the extremists, the Republicans, in the Congress, in the House, in the Senate, in the White House, could care less about the fact that tens of millions of Americans are about to experience dramatically increased premiums, copays, and deductibles. That's out of control. And they could care less. What are they doing? Destroying the White House so that Donald Trump can build a ballroom where he's celebrated like a wannabe king. Donald Trump's trying to steal $230 million from the taxpayers by shaking down the Department of Injustice. And these extremists, they somehow have managed to find $40 billion to bail out Argentina, and they can't find a dime to extend the Affordable Care Act tax credits for working-class Americans, everyday Americans, and middle-class Americans. The whole thing is a disgrace, and the American people see it. We are going to support efforts to make sure that there are fair maps all across the country in the face of what Republicans are endeavoring to do, which is to rig the midterm elections by gerrymandering Congressional Mac, because Republicans know that if the elections were held today, they would lose, and lose decisively. Republicans have done nothing to make life better for the American people. The only thing that they've done this year is to enact their one big ugly bill, largest cut to Medicaid in American history. And on top of that, about $186 billion that they took from the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program literally stole this money from the mouths of hungry children, seniors, veterans, and families. And why did Republicans do all of this? So they can reward their billionaire donors with massive tax breaks that they then made permanent. So the Republican agenda has been to hurt everyday Americans in order to reward their billionaire donors. They have nothing to show for the fact that Republicans have complete control of the House, the Senate, and the presidency, which is why Donald Trump and Republicans, running scared, are trying to rig the Congressional Mac and steal the midterm elections from the American people. We will not let it happen. So in Ohio, there's an opportunity to go to referendum if the Republicans at Donald Trump's direction pass a gerrymandered partisan map. And if that happens, just like we're doing in California right now, and we'll also do in Missouri, we will take the issue to the voters of Ohio, and I'm confident that we will prevail. Let's be clear about the situation that the American people confront. As part of their one big ugly bill, they cut $186 billion from the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program. That's the reason why the American people are at risk of going hungry, millions of them. And as has been the case in prior government shutdowns, the money can be found by the administration if they chose to do so. In fact, there's about $5 billion available in a contingency fund for emergency circumstances just like this. But the administration refuses to agree to use it. Why? Because they want to starve the American people. As part of their continuing effort to visit cruelty on everyday Americans. And I think at the end of the day, the administration, as they've done in other instances, will realize that they're being held accountable for having shut down the government. They're being held accountable for inflicting pain on the American people. And they will back away from their threats to starve the American people by depriving them of the earned benefit of nutritional assistance. The private conversations that I've had with legislative leaders and governors across the country will remain private. The people in Virginia, in terms of the legislative leaders, will speak for themselves in terms of the actions that are being contemplated. We remain ready, willing, and able to sit down with our Republican colleagues either here at the Capitol or back at the White House in order to reopen the government, to find a bipartisan path forward, and to decisively address the Republican health care crisis. But it requires immediate and urgent action in order to actually address the situation that the American people find themselves in. Remember, here's the scope of what we're talking about in terms of this health care crisis. Donald Trump promised to love and cherish Medicaid, and then Republicans turned around and enacted the largest cut to Medicaid in American history, a trillion dollar cut. Hospitals, nursing homes, and community-based health centers are closing all across the country, now, because of what Republicans did in their one big ugly bill. Republican policies have led to a situation where Medicare may confront a $536 billion cut by the end of this year if Congress doesn't act. Because of the Republican refusal to extend the Affordable Care Act tax credits, tens of millions of people are receiving notices right now that their premiums are about to skyrocket, and they're going to face medical bankruptcy or the inability to see a doctor when they, their children, or their families need one. And at the same period of time, Republicans continue to put forward a partisan bill here in the House that would cut about $1.7 billion from the Centers for Disease Control, cut a little under $500 million from the National Institute of Health, and they're depriving the American people of the ability to get life-sustaining and life-saving vaccines. This is the Republican health care crisis. It is enormous. It is devastating. It is crushing everyday Americans. And that's why Democrats believe decisive action needs to be taken. Thanks, everyone. Thank you.