Thune says he offered Democrats a vote on Obamacare subsidies to end government shutdown

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: ABC News

October 16, 2025, 3:04 PM


Senate Majority Leader John Thune said he offered Democrats an opportunity to address their biggest priority in an effort to end the government shutdown -- but it was not enough to end the stalemate.

Thune, during an interview on MSNBC that aired Thursday morning, said he has offered Democrats a vote on extending the Affordable Care Act premium subsidies, but that he couldn't guarantee an outcome. Thune said he won't negotiate on the details of an Obamacare subsidies deal until the government reopens.

"I've told them. I said, and I've said, 'We are willing to have the conversation.' I've said, 'If you need a vote, we can guarantee you get a vote by a date certain.' At some point Democrats have to take yes for an answer," Thune said in the interview, which was taped Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer told reporters Thursday afternoon that Republicans did not offer any proposal to vote to extend the Affordable Care Act subsidies, putting congressional leaders at odds as the shutdown continues. "Look, we're not negotiating in public. Plain and simple," Schumer said when asked if Thune had made the offer. "Leader Thune has not come to me with any proposal at this point."

Read more: https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/thune-offered-democrats-vote-obamacare-subsidies-end-government/story?id=126578971

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Thune =

[hatrack]

1. Wow. A Republican political leader lied. Shocking.

Jane.

Stop this crazy thing.

[quakerboy]

15. Is it a lie?

Im sure he did make that offer. Knowing, as we all know, that this vote means nothing. The R's will stand against it and the vote will fail.

We are not negotiating to have a conversation with a foregone negative conclusion. Democrats are negotiating to actually get a minor concession.

[walkingman]

2. Have that vote now - you are getting paid....do your job.

[msongs]

3. dear dems - repubs have ALL the votes they need to end shutdown. rinse and repeat 24/7 dont argue in the media nt

[AZJonnie]

4. 🖕 All these fuckers in the RepuQ party do is LIE and GASLIGHT the voting public day-in, day-out 🖕

The "negotiations" obviously already happened, everyone has known for a LONG TIME that the Affordable Care Act subsidies were expiring, and that letting them expire was not an option for Democrats. You've known that they would NOT vote to keep the government open if you assholes would not extend them. Because they didn't want MANY millions of people to be priced out of healthcare coverage, almost surely resulting in DEATH for thousands of people in upcoming months and years, and hundreds of 1000's of medical bankruptcies

You GQP chucklenut bastards have been WHINING about the ACA for 15 years. At no point have you offered any serious replacement of your own. Know why? BECAUSE ACA CAME STRAIGHT FROM RIGHT WING THINK TANKS. It is EXACTLY the "free-market solution" you shitheads would've proposed, but Democrats beat you at your own game. So now you've got NOTHING but whining and gaslighting.

So, how bout you go eat a large bag of dicks, all of you fucking asshats?

[Rebl2]

5. I don't

believe him for one second.

[DallasNE]

6. Don't Do It

This is a typical Republican Pig in a Poke. Democrats would need Republicans votes to pass and even if that happened it would face a certain Trump veto. It takes the leverage of a must pass bill to become law.

[Raven123]

7. Exactly.

[DallasNE]

29. Another thing this shows

Is the insincerity that grips the Republican Party.

[Prairie Gates]

8. Thune's position hasn't changed at all, and ABC News should not repackage it this way

Thune's position is "We'll vote on ACA subsidies later. In a stand alone bill. Separate from the rest of the budget. Like, probably."

Yeah, no. Vote on them now, in the budget bill. Up or down vote on the whole shebang. Let's go, Thune. Call the vote.

[BumRushDaShow]

9. They're not repackaging - they are quoting from the MSNBC interview this morning

[Prairie Gates]

10. It is repackaging because Thune's position has not changed at all

Are they going to report every time he says the same thing on a new day as if it is something new?

Omitting the fact that this is the same position he's had for the whole shut down is very dishonest reporting and a disservice to their readers.

[BumRushDaShow]

11. "Are they going to report every time he says the same thing on a new day as if it is something new?"

Yes they will "report every time" except that this time, he did it in a formal interview AND they have "reported every day" about what will be a failed vote for the clean C.R.

[Prairie Gates]

12. They are reporting it as if it is a new offer

It is not. It is the same offer, and the article is deceptive on this point.

[BumRushDaShow]

13. He is asserting it as an actual "offer" to the media as a P.R. stunt and defensive move

versus his and Johnson's previous talking points indicating a bogus "assurance" to consider other things that Dems wanted AFTER they caved.

[Prairie Gates]

14. Yes, I understand what he's doing and so does ABC, which is why they should report it

Instead of playing along with his charade.

[bmichaelh]

16. ACA Repeal by another name

I did not watch the interview but this is a question I doubt they asked.

You voted for the repeal of ACA in the past.
This is your way to repeal the ACA if not in whole but in part because if the premiums are too high, some people, even people in your own state will drop their insurance.

[reACTIONary]

17. The subsidies HAVE to be packaged with the CR, otherwise....

..... there is no assurance the goppers will vote for them.

[angrychair]

18. Honestly it doesn't matter

I'll be completely frank I don't know what the answer is anymore.
The Senate and House Democratic caucus cannot trust Republicans on anything they say. They can even include it in the budget and pass it only to have the Mango Mussolini administration just decide "nah, nevermind" and refuse to do it.
No matter what they negotiate they can now just line item veto all they want or just reduce it by whatever they want and there really absolutely nothing anyone can do about it.
The courts can yell at them, as they are doing now about court orders this administration is ignoring, but the courts are completely toothless because they have no means of enforcement.

Basically our only hope is literally that people will finally have enough but I have lost all faith in humanity at this point and truly believe that if he just issues a $500 check that most people will shut up and be quiet and let him do whatever he wants.
I always love how people say stuff like "would you let "person X" do "thing X" for a million dollars" when in reality the average American would sell out their entire family for a $25 gift card to Denny's.
Maybe I'm wrong and hopefully I am but the country is in a very bad spot right now and I don't think there is a lot of options on the table to fix it

[Skittles]

19. GEE. WHO TO BELIEVE?

FUCKING LYING REPUKE PIECE OF SHIT

[JohnnyRingo]

20. He wants to pass the bill, then he will negotiate after the shutdown ends

He "can't guarantee an outcome" but they'll vote on keeping Obamacare extensions.

In the words of Admiral Ackbar:

[img][/img]

[barbtries]

21. alternate headline:

thune lied.

oh, but that's not news, that's just another day in the disunited states of dystopia

[Javaman]

22. "but that he couldn't guarantee an outcome"

piss up a rope loon.

[COL Mustard]

23. In the meantime, we keep sitting at home....

Knowing we'll (probably) get back pay. Keep it up, Congress. My leaves won't rake themselves!

[dlk]

24. Eventually, their endless lies may catch up with them

It would help if the mainstream media weren’t so passive.

Republicans cannot be counted on to act in good faith, pretty much, ever. They make used car salesmen look like saints.

[MichMan]

25. Keep it shut down until the midterms if necessary

[samplegirl]

26. Wow! Thune is in lockstep

With the lie machine! Who would of guessed?

[lonely bird]

27. Thule knows it wouldn't pass

His offer isn’t an offer.

He is too cowardly to put the ACA subsidies in the main bill even though that is a perfectly acceptable place for them to be.

[mike_c]

28. bullshit!

Revise the budget resolution and vote on that! Carving Healthcare out only guarantees it's defeat. Make Republicans vote on the CR with Healthcare subsidies included!