In a heated moment that punctuated the 38th day of the longest federal government shutdown in U.S. history, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer abruptly left the Senate floor after being pressed by Senator Bernie Moreno, R-OH, over healthcare subsidies and the lack of a formal Democratic proposal to amend the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The tense exchange underscored the deep divisions not only between the parties but within the broader debate about the future of taxpayer-funded healthcare.
At issue was Schumer’s admission that Democrats do not currently have a written counterproposal to address the structural flaws in the ACA. Instead, Schumer suggested a temporary extension of the COVID-era benefits for one year, claiming that would provide immediate relief while leaving room for further negotiations. “We have two sentences we would add,” he explained, a line that seemed to carry more improvisation than policy.
WATCH: @SenSchumer abruptly walks off the floor as he was being questioned by Sen. @BernieMoreno about his proposal to end the shutdown.
Moreno asked Schumer if his proposal was in writing that people could look at.. and if people making millions would still receive the… pic.twitter.com/aRxzdYV5Fx
— Amber Jo Cooper (@AmberJoCooper) November 8, 2025
That impromptu approach did little to satisfy Senator Moreno, who seized the opportunity to highlight a major oversight in the existing ACA framework: the lack of income caps. As Moreno pointed out, the current structure allows individuals earning millions to receive taxpayer-subsidized premiums—a feature that appears increasingly untenable amid rising public scrutiny of federal spending.
Moreno’s inquiry into whether Democrats were comfortable continuing subsidies to the ultra-wealthy prompted Schumer to respond not with clarity, but with deflection—accusing Moreno of favoring billionaires before yielding the floor and walking away. It was a dramatic moment, but one that left more questions than answers, especially as Moreno pressed on alone, questioning the sustainability of “$0 premiums,” citing well-documented fraud, and wondering aloud whether these subsidies were simply lining insurance companies’ pockets.
🚨 BREAKING: Fueled by Donald Trump’s new Obamacare demands, John Thune tells Chuck Schumer “NO” — he will NOT pass Chuck’s healthcare subsidies in order to reopen the government pic.twitter.com/Tdce3e9bJ9
THUNE: It’s a NON-STARTER! […] Only ONE path out – it’s a clean funding…
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) November 8, 2025
Meanwhile, the broader legislative crisis deepened. Democrats in the Senate have voted against reopening the government 14 times, opting instead to tie government funding to extensions of the ACA subsidies. Republicans, led by Majority Leader John Thune, insist that the path forward is a clean funding bill—one that doesn’t include unrelated healthcare provisions.
🚨 WOW! President Trump has backed the Democrats into a CORNER of defending Big Insurance now that he has proposed just giving the money to the people directly
Chuck Schumer doesn’t know how to respond to this.
The Democrat 2026 platform just became pro-Big Insurance scamming… pic.twitter.com/CG8G0mWCLM
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) November 8, 2025
President Trump weighed in earlier in the day, calling for healthcare funds to be directed to consumers directly rather than insurance companies, adding another layer to a rapidly shifting narrative around public health funding, government priorities, and shutdown politics.
