US lawmakers are working through the weekend for the first time since the government shutdown began over a month ago, but expectations for a bipartisan agreement on how to resolve the standoff appeared to diminish as Republican senators proposed a plan unacceptable to Democrats: eliminating the Affordable Care Act, called Obamacare.
Growing Consequences of Federal Closure
The impact on US citizens from the lengthiest shutdown of the federal government in history worsened on Saturday, as federal workers went unpaid, carriers were compelled to cancel flights and SNAP benefits have been postponed for 42 million Americans.
President's Proposal from Florida Resort
As Saturday's session got under way, Republican senators welcomed a proposal made on online platforms early Saturday by Donald Trump from his golf course in West Palm Beach, for government payments to be replaced by HSA-style accounts.
"My recommendation is to Senate Republicans that the Billions of Dollars currently being sent to profit-driven 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," Trump wrote.
GOP Support
Multiple Republican senators praised the proposal, which is similar to a alternative for Obamacare put forward in 2017.
"We will replace this broken system with something that is truly better for the consumer," one senator stated.
Another senator commended Trump's proposal on social media, and stood next to a giant blow-up of Trump's post as he addressed on the Senate floor.
"I'm writing the bill right now," a third senator posted in response to Trump's proposal. "We need to stop public funds from going to carriers and instead give it straight to Americans in health savings accounts and let them buy the health care they want."
Democratic Response
Opposition senators expressed alarmed reactions to Trump's proposal.
"In other words, Donald Trump's 'concept of a plan' for health care is another calculated attempt to eliminate Obamacare," one Democratic senator stated. "This is the same failed Republican plan that's been rejected by voters and Congress."
Another senator responded to the censure of insurance companies by writing: "Oh, Trump and the Republicans can't stand how the big, bad insurance companies are ripping-off Americans. Really? Then I applaud your support for universal healthcare."
Continuing Talks
The Senate adjourned without reaching a resolution, but Senate Republican leaders have indicated an willingness to an developing proposal from a small group of moderate Democrats to end the closure in exchange for a later vote on the ACA payments.
One Democratic senator, who is leading the talks among centrists, said that Democrats "require another path forward" after Republicans rejected an proposal to restart the government and continue the payments for a year.
Another leading Democratic senator continued in maintaining that Republicans should accept a one-year extension of the payments before negotiating the future of the tax credits.
"Inaction is derelict because citizens will go bankrupt, people will become uninsured, people will get more ill," the senator stated in a Senate address. "That is what will happen if this Congress does nothing."
Political Situation
Not one of the Republican senators seemed to grapple with the fact that consumers would still need to buy plans from the same carriers, or that Republican legislators need the backing of eight Democrats to restart the government, and the idea of eliminating and replacing Obamacare with savings accounts is unlikely to earn a single Democratic vote.
Several observers suggested that the essence of such a proposal would remove the ACA's mandate that insurance companies cover individuals with pre-existing conditions.
After his golf outing, Trump went back to his private club and doubled down on his insistence that Republicans stop seeking compromise and try instead to eliminate and replace Obamacare with a iteration of the plan that failed to secure enough support in 2017.
