This past week, the Republicans presented a common-sense Continuing Resolution to keep the federal government funded through almost the end of the year. The Senate needed 60 votes to pass the resolution, and all 53 Republican senators voted against shutting down the government, along with two common-sense Democrats, Cortez-Masto and Fetterman, and one independent, Angus King from Maine, who usually attends the Democratic caucuses. What was needed was 4 Democratic Senators to approve the resolution keeping the federal government open. I thought there were, at least, 4 Democratic Senators who call themselves moderates. But I guess not.
Our own Senators Hassan and Shaheen, who call themselves moderates at election time, have voted almost 100% with the left-wing Democratic radicals. Our Senators do what Minority Leader Schumer tells them to do. Schumer is controlled by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC), the leader of that left-wing radical group. Schumer is concerned that AOC will challenge his leadership in the 2026 primary election, so he will do what she wants. This means that our Democratic Congressional delegation represents the ideas of the New York Senator and not what is best for the people of New Hampshire, like keeping open the Portsmouth Naval shipyard and the Pease Air Guard workers.
Our Congresswoman, Maggie Goodlander, has finally started to communicate with NH. voters as it is getting closer to election time. She noted recently that she voted for her idea of a “common-sense” House Bill, but it was defeated in the Senate. That piece of legislation was not a common-sense Bill. The Continuing Resolution presented by the Republican controlled Senate is the Bill that these Democrats voted against funding the government with.
What no one in the NH Congressional delegation will tell us is that their version of common-sense legislation includes the funding of free medical benefits for the illegal immigrants now in our country. They are just telling us that they want the funding of these Medicaid benefits to remain in the next year. Biden paroled 19 million illegal immigrants through an Executive Order before he left office. This parole status would give the immigrants continued free access to our medical care system. In the Tax Reform Act recently passed by Congress, the provision of taking valuable funds from our lower-income citizens and giving those benefits to these illegal immigrants was taken out. The NH delegation is just telling us that funding for Medicaid is being reduced in the continuing resolution. AOC is pressuring the Democrats not to vote to reopen the government if that provision for illegal immigrant healthcare is not included.
The irony of all these attempts to add the medical benefits to Obamacare was already passed with an extension to year-end for these benefits in the so-called Inflation Reduction Act. This was Democratic legislation. So, what AOC is pressuring the Democrats to do is to shut down the federal government if she does not get that extension for another year for the illegals.
What Senate Majority leader Thune said, “let’s pass this Continuing Resolution to keep the government open, and we will have ample time before year-end to come up with a bipartisan agreement on this Obamacare funding. But no, AOC wants it done now or she will force the moderate Democrats, our delegation included, to vote “NO” on reopening our federal government.
The further irony here is that when the Democrats controlled Congress in Trump’s first term, they needed Republicans to go along with the Democratic CR. The Democrats said they would hold the Republicans responsible for the shutdown of the government. Schumer said that the Democrats really cared about the welfare of the government employees who would be affected by the shutdown. Why did Schumer care about the employees then, when he needed the Republican support, but now, he cares more about what AOC wants than his caring for the federal employees. The Democrats are responsible for this shutdown, and many marginal employees can lose their jobs.
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