Trump Offers to Fund All Obamacare Subsidies in Exchange for Border Funds
Trump promised voters on the campaign trail a full repeal of Obamacare, and that Mexico would pay for the border wall. He lied about all of it.
A new report reveals President Trump’s attempts to work out a mutually agreeable deal with Democrats, in regards to the upcoming federal budget.
According to POLITICO, the White House offered to fund Obamacare subsidies, dollar for dollar, if Democrats would agree to fund the building of the border wall.
Budget director Mick Mulvaney broke the news of the offer.
Mulvaney told Bloomberg Live on Friday that White House officials have told Democrats they’re willing to fund $1 in Obamacare subsidies for every $1 that’s provided for the border wall as both parties look to avert a government shutdown next Friday.
“That’s the offer we’ve given to our Democratic colleagues. That should form the fundamental understanding that gets us to an agreement,” Mulvaney said.
That’s the offer given to Democrats, but it most certainly is not the offer given to those who voted for Trump.
What Trump offered to voters on the campaign trail was: A) Full repeal of Obamacare, and B) Mexico would pay for the border wall.
Now it appears none of that is going to happen, as Trump’s administration seems willing to keep funding Obamacare and make the American taxpayers pay for the ever-growing cost of a border wall.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer responded to the White House’s offer with a bit of bite:
“The White House gambit to hold hostage health care for millions of Americans, in order to force American taxpayers to foot the bill for a wall that the president said would be paid for by Mexico is a complete nonstarter,” he said. “If the administration would drop their eleventh-hour demand for a wall that Democrats, and a good number of Republicans, oppose, congressional leaders could quickly reach a deal.”
Well, he’s not completely wrong.
While I can’t jump on Schumer’s Obamacare cheerleading, Trump did say Mexico would pay for that wall, and in reality, it’s unnecessary. There are less costly, equally effective ways of protecting the border. Many of them could have already been in place, if Trump would only get a move on it.
This likely won’t be a deal breaker, going into next week. The talk of a shutdown is the equivalent of saber-rattling on both sides, but if nothing else, a short-term agreement will be reached.
