Juan Ciscomani Joins Letter Blaming Senate Democrats for Shutdown

Representative Juan Ciscomani (R-AZ) joined a letter with several other House Republicans affirming Speaker Mike Johnson's (R-LA) blaming of Senate Democrats for the government shutdown while also pushing for healthcare reforms.

Republicans have long argued that Democrats refuse to reopen the government because the continuing resolution (CR) passed by House Republicans allows Affordable Care Act (ACA) tax credits to expire. This, Democrats argue, would drive up healthcare costs for many Americans.

Senator Mark Kelly (D-AZ) recently shared these concerns with a constituent, saying, urging lawmakers to "fix" the problem.

While Republicans have focused on the fact that Democrats are demanding $1.5 trillion in extra spending, including the provision of healthcare for illegal aliens, Rep. Ciscomani's letter says the healthcare concerns are valid, and Republicans should propose a solution.

"Democrats are using the American people during a government shutdown as political leverage for unrelated policy changes they know have no chance at becoming law," the Arizona Republican expressed in a statement. "Democrats created this healthcare cliff and now want to use the shutdown to force Republicans to bail them out of their own mess, on their own terms,"

Vowing to not "play that game," Ciscomani addressed that Democrats should "re-open the federal government and we can discuss solutions, as we had been doing before they forced this shutdown, to deliver real relief for working families without turning troops, border agents, or veterans into political bargaining chips."

Ciscomani emphasized that "healthcare costs are crushing Arizona families." As such, he wants to deliver "reforms that protect taxpayers, protect families, and lower costs the right way, not through shutdown standoffs that only hurt the very people we were elected to represent."

The Arizona Congressman had previously condemned comments by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), in which he said "every day gets better for us" regarding the shutdown.

"Do you really think things are getting better each day?" Ciscomani questioned.