Video News Clips: In Their Own Words

Brit Hume Says There’s A Way Democrats Avoid Blame For Shutdown

Brit Hume Says There's A Way Democrats Avoid Blame For Shutdown (Screenshot/Fox News)

Fox News chief political analyst Brit Hume said Wednesday that while Democrats might seem positioned to take the blame for the current government shutdown, there’s a way they can avoid the backlash.

Congress failed to pass a stopgap funding bill before the Oct. 1 deadline, triggering a federal government shutdown at 12:01 a.m. In an appearance on “Special Report with Bret Baier,” Hume warned that the current government shutdown could play out differently than in 2013, depending on how the press handles the story.

“You’d think that the Democrats would get the blame. But a lot will depend on the media coverage, so I wouldn’t bet on it,” Hume said.

Hume recalled that more than a decade ago, Republican Texas Sen. Ted Cruz persuaded House Republicans to tie funding to efforts to dismantle Obamacare.

WATCH: 

“Let’s go back to a little bit different then and now, John. Let’s go back to 2013. Senator Ted Cruz talked to the House Republicans into trying to get Obamacare blocked or defunded by shutting the government down. And he thought, you know, Obama won’t want to shut the government down. He’d be willing to retreat on Obamacare, his signature legislation. Obama refused, the government shut down, and the Republicans got blamed,” Hume said.

Hume said that Republicans, in 2013, triggered a shutdown and they got the blame.

“And they instigated it, and they probably should have gotten the blame. They certainly did get it. So here we are again. We have a signature piece of legislation from President Trump, and that was the Big, Beautiful Bill,” Hume said. “And in it were some spending restraints on various kinds of various programs, including Medicaid and others. The Democrats now want to force that money back into the budget.”

Hume said House Republicans passed the resolution with full support from their caucus, joined by a few Democrats in the Senate. But without the 60 votes needed to break a filibuster, the measure stalled, and the shutdown took effect.

“Republicans are balking, and Republicans have proposed exactly what the Democrats proposed back in 2013, which is basically a clean, continuing resolution to keep the government open. They passed it out of the House, and all their members voted for it in the Senate, and then a few Democrats did too. But it’s being filibustered, which means you need 60 votes. They don’t have it, so the government is shut down,” Hume said.

In Oct. 2013, House Republicans passed a government funding bill that included provisions to delay or scale back the Affordable Care Act, prompting a standoff with Senate Democrats. When Senate Democrats refused to consider any funding measure tied to Obamacare changes, Congress failed to pass a budget in time, triggering a 16-day federal shutdown.

The argument over the government shutdown centers on healthcare spending. Democratic leadership is pushing to renew expanded Obamacare subsidies from the Biden administration as a condition for backing any funding deal.

Making those subsidies permanent could add $350 billion to the federal deficit over the next decade, according to the Congressional Budget Office. Republican lawmakers, however, insist that Congress should prioritize passing a funding bill before debating any new healthcare-related tax provisions.

(Featured Image Media Credit: Screenshot/Fox News)