Video News Clips: In Their Own Words

Democrat Senator Chris Murphy Tells Jim Acosta Ulterior Motive For Gov’t Shutdown

Screenshot/YouTube/Jim Acosta

Democratic Connecticut Sen. Chris Murphy told former CNN host Jim Acosta on “The Jim Acosta Show” Thursday that the ongoing government shutdown was partly about political optics rather than solely helping Americans.

The Senate failed to pass a seven-week continuing resolution on Tuesday, falling short of the 60 votes needed to overcome a Democratic filibuster. Murphy said on the show that in addition to “protecting” the Americans they represent, Democrats are trying to send the message that they are fighters and convince them that Republicans are truly threatening “democracy.”

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“People want to see us fighting. They want to see us have a backbone. They want to know how we’re different from [President] Donald Trump,” Murphy told Acosta. “And when we don’t fight hard, especially when the entire enterprise of democracy is at risk, then we don’t seem sincere when we tell people that there might not be a free and fair election in 2026.”

“People say, ‘Well, if that’s the case, why were you so eager to sign on to a budget that funded the destruction of democracy?’ So what we’re doing here is protecting our constituents, but we’re also signaling to people how urgent the moment is by being willing to hold the line here,” he added.

While Democrats are justifying the shutdown to push for lower healthcare costs, they do not seem to be changing course despite certain Americans losing access to healthcare services amid the funding lapse.

Telehealth and home care coverage for millions of Medicare beneficiaries expired on Wednesday at midnight because of Democrats tanking the continuing resolution. The Daily Caller News Foundation on Wednesday spoke to over ten Democrats who indicated they would not relent their hardball strategy despite some seniors losing access to healthcare services.

Murphy told the DCNF on Wednesday that he was unaware of reporting that healthcare services were being frozen because of the shutdown.

“I haven’t seen any list of, you know, services they’re cutting,” Murphy said. He also blamed the Trump administration for coverage lapsing despite the reason for it being Democrats’ votes for a shutdown.

Moreover, Democrats’ proposal to keep the government open would reinstate billions in funding for foreign aid and public broadcasting, remove a $50 million fund for rural health providers and enact a permanent extension of former President Joe Biden-era Obamacare subsidies.

Furthermore, analysts and GOP lawmakers told the DCNF that Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer purposely plunged the nation into a shutdown to improve his reputation with the Democratic Party’s far-left wing and score political points against Republicans amid his party’s dismal poll numbers.