General Discussion

I'm seeing some misinformation and confusion about the expiring ACA credits. These are not the premium tax credits (PTC) that were put in place when the ACA was passed back in 2010 and enacted in 2014. These were *enhanced* premium tax credits, that were a gift from Joe Biden under the American Rescue Plan Act in 2021, later extended through the Inflation Reduction Act until the end of 2025. These credits temporarily expanded eligibility and increased the amount of financial assistance for health insurance premiums. They were mostly to benefit red states whose Governors had not opted fully into the ACA.
Now those are going away, just as they had been scheduled to.
In 2017, the GOP passed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), which benefitted high-income earners by giving them lower tax rates and increased deductions. These were set to expire in late 2025, but since the GOP got a trifecta in the last election, they gleefully extended them in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act of 2025. To nobody's surprise, the issue of also extending Joe Biden's ACA expansion was never even discussed by the ruling party.
When the Democrats decided to participate in the shutdown, they needed a wedge issue to justify all the pain that would be inflicted on Government workers, etc. They very wisely went back to Joe Biden's ACA *enhanced* premium tax credits, and proposed extending them, while pointing out that the GOP extended their financial assistance to the wealthy. Democrats did this from a position of no power and no leverage.
Now the game of chicken is coming to an end, and some Democrats in the Senate are going to vote to end the shutdown. I am seeing a LOT of people pouting and shouting "they caved! they always cave!" This is frankly ridiculous.
The idea that the GOP would extend Joe Biden's ACA expansion was never going to happen and everyone knew it. I knew it, they knew it. If you are squealing and pouting now, I guess you are the only one who didn't know it. This was a performance by Democrats because their constituents said loud and clear they wanted them to fight.
The point was to make the GOP go on RECORD and be very VISIBLY responsible for the pain in people's pocketbook when the credits expire on December 31, 2025. To that end, their plan worked masterfully. People's healthcare will get more expensive in fewer than 2 months, and they will know who to blame [the GOP! Blame the people in power!]. The Dems were also able to negotiate a floor vote on the ACA expansion extension - which will put the GOP on record as voting against healthcare for many of their constituents.
So, I am going to need you Debbie Downers to put your big girl panties on and take a look at the facts. The Dems did not cave. They did exactly what they set out to do, given the limited options they had. Stop expecting your party to perform miracles, and then acting like a whiny little baby when they can't. Elections have consequences. [ETA: sorry so harsh but I am leaving it]
PS: The top nine states who will be hurt the most when the Biden credits expire, all voted GOP in 2024. Biden gave them insurance, Dump is taking it away, even though they voted for him. THAT is the message
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