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Schumer then tried to justify the plan by saying Democrats were willing to negotiate “once the credits are extended.” He added, “Once we pass the one-year fixed so people right now aren’t in difficulty, we would sit and negotiate that.”
Moreno fired back, “So for one year, people making millions of dollars would still receive these COVID-era subsidies?”
At that point, Schumer snapped, accusing Moreno of caring more about billionaires—then abruptly walked out of the chamber.
“I was going to ask him before he stormed out of the room because evidently he doesn‘t want to hear any opposing views or actually engage in meaningful negotiation … Would he continue 0 dollar premiums, which we know for a FACT, have enormous levels of fraud,” Moreno said afterward. “If he had stayed, I would have asked him a third question: Does he want these monies to go directly to insurance companies?”
The confrontation underscored the growing rift between Democrats defending Obamacare and Republicans rallying around a bold new approach unveiled by former President Donald Trump.
Trump, in a fiery post on Truth Social, proposed taking “hundreds of billions” in Obamacare subsidies currently funneled to insurance companies and sending them directly to the American people instead.
“I am recommending to Senate Republicans that the Hundreds of Billions of Dollars currently being sent to money sucking Insurance Companies in order to save the bad Healthcare provided by ObamaCare, BE SENT DIRECTLY TO THE PEOPLE SO THAT THEY CAN PURCHASE THEIR OWN, MUCH BETTER, HEALTHCARE, and have money left over,” Trump wrote.
He continued, “In other words, take from the BIG, BAD Insurance Companies, give it to the people, and terminate, per Dollar spent, the worst Healthcare anywhere in the World, ObamaCare. Unrelated, we must still terminate the Filibuster!”
Trump’s proposal immediately flipped the narrative. What started as a Democratic attempt to pressure Republicans during the shutdown battle suddenly became a political boomerang, with Trump emerging as the champion of “healthcare freedom.”
Conservative analysts praised the move as “genius,” noting that Trump had effectively recast the healthcare debate as a battle between ordinary Americans and the corporate interests propped up by Democrats.
Within hours, Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL) threw his full support behind the idea, announcing plans to draft legislation based on Trump’s plan.
“Totally agree, @POTUS! I’m writing the bill right now,” Scott posted on X. “We must stop taxpayer money from going to insurance companies and instead give it directly to Americans in HSA-style accounts and let them buy the health care they want. This will increase competition & drive down costs.”
While Schumer scrambles to defend billion-dollar subsidies for insurance giants, Trump and Senate Republicans appear to have found new footing in the shutdown fight—turning what was once a defensive battle into a populist offensive aimed squarely at Washington’s cozy relationship with big healthcare.
As one conservative commentator summed it up: Schumer’s “fix” may have just handed Trump the political weapon he needed most—proof that Democrats care more about protecting corporate insurance than protecting the American taxpayer.
