SIMS: Shutdown Showdown in New Hampshire

Democratic Dysfunction, Obamacare’s Failures, and the Cost to Granite Staters

Millions of families across America—and right here in New Hampshire—are feeling the consequences of Washington’s political dysfunction as the latest government shutdown stretches from days to weeks. For federal workers, SNAP recipients, small businesses, and property owners struggling to keep up with rising costs, this is not an abstract dispute: it’s a mounting crisis of paychecks delayed, benefits canceled, food banks strained, and uncertainty spreading through every community.

What makes this shutdown especially infuriating for Granite Staters is the way misleading talking points, hypocrisy, and outright lies from national Democratic leaders have turned the crisis from a solvable policy standoff into a drawn-out culture war over power and dependency. As families scramble and local agencies invoke emergency measures, Washington Democrats have blocked twelve clean resolutions that would reopen the government immediately, choosing instead to hold critical federal functions hostage to demands for permanent Obamacare tax credit extensions. These credits, riddled with fraud and subsidy waste as confirmed by audits, are defended as “affordable health care” while working families are left without paychecks or SNAP benefits.

The New Hampshire Reality

Here in New Hampshire, the impact is direct and punishing. Nearly 19,000 federal workers have gone weeks without pay. More than 75,000 residents, including families and seniors, rely on SNAP benefits that are now threatened with delays or suspension. The Department of Health and Human Services has scrambled to set up partnerships with the state Food Bank—an urgent response to what should have been a routine, functional federal program.

DHHS Commissioner Lori Weaver summed it up: “We’re doing everything we can, but state funds only go so far without federal support.” And with federal aid withheld, local officials are forced to fill the vacuum with dwindling resources and volunteers already burned out by years of pandemic and inflation.

But the root of the problem isn’t in Concord—it’s an ideological hostage crisis staged by Democrats in Washington. Senators Maggie Hassan and Jeanne Shaheen have taken center stage in blocking bipartisan attempts to reopen the government, deferring to Senate leadership and refusing clean continuing resolutions (CRs) unless loaded with welfare and health-insurance sweeteners. Whether you’re waiting for your SNAP payment, paycheck, or tax refund, the mechanisms are frozen because Democratic leaders made it conditional on expanding the welfare state.

“New Hampshire is open and serving people while Washington is locked down,” said state Rep. Maureen Mooney. “Our senators are leveraging suffering for Chuck Schumer’s agenda.”

Obamacare’s Empty Promises

This period of dysfunction is emblematic of a broader failure: Obamacare, the Democrats’ self-proclaimed “crowning achievement,” promised lower premiums, stable coverage, and more choice. Instead, families in New Hampshire have seen premiums and deductibles explode, doctors lost, and audits expose waste and fraud at historic levels. New Hampshire families now pay nearly $9,500 a year—more than 12 percent of average household income—on medical costs. Our premiums are among the highest in New England.

A 2024 House oversight report found loose verification rules under Biden have led to “rampant subsidy waste and abuse.” The CBO and GAO note millions of ineligible or phantom enrollees—sometimes automatically enrolled through flawed systems, never using a policy, but generating billions in waste. The Democratic answer: shrug and request “more funding.” As Rep. Scott Brown put it, “Obamacare’s a house of cards built on borrowed money.” Granite Staters know the deck is stacked against the taxpayer and working class.

Culture of Dependency vs. Granite State Values

The fiscal crisis is mirrored by a slow degradation of cultural values. Across New England, able-bodied adults have appeared at welfare offices and pantries demanding delayed benefits, blaming everyone but themselves, and lashing out at taxpayers. SNAP and Medicaid are important lifelines—but they were designed to be bridges, not beds for permanent dependency. Hardworking New Hampshire drivers, nurses, and tradesmen prop up these programs with ever-larger tax bills while the incentive to work and invest fades under the promise of government comfort.

Yet Democrats have rebranded welfare as a lifestyle, building political loyalty on dependency and eroding the ethic of self-reliance that built the Granite State. One small-business owner remarked, “When you turn welfare into a way of life, you don’t lift people out of poverty—you trap them there.” The path to independence and dignity—what truly made America strong—is being replaced by an entitlement culture that saps the will and ability to work.

Trump’s Common Sense and the Dilemma for New Hampshire

Against this backdrop, President Donald Trump and the GOP have taken a clear position: open the government now, then debate healthcare in public instead of backroom deals. Pragmatic reforms—restoring income caps, requiring minimal contributions to eliminate fraud, and restoring verification checks—would stabilize markets and reward hard work. The Republican plan isn’t flashy; it’s about restoring order, discipline, and common sense.

Surprisingly, polling now shows that most voters—including independents in New Hampshire—are siding with this approach. CNN data analyst Harry Enten revealed that the Republican brand in Congress has benefited from the shutdown, not suffered. Enten cited a five-point rise in overall approval since the shutdown’s start, with independents swinging eight points toward the GOP and the base surging twelve. “This is, in fact, the worst position Democrats have been in the last 20 years on the generic ballot,” he explained. Instead of alienating voters, the Republicans’ refusal to cave to Democratic hostage-taking is uniting both base and middle—a trend that bodes ill for Democrats heading into midterms.

Speaker Mike Johnson’s recent appearance on The Ben Shapiro Show crystallized the frustration of New Hampshire and the nation. Johnson framed the Democrats’ refusal to pass a clean bill as a deliberate move to inflict pain for political leverage—calling out Senators Hassan and Shaheen, and citing left-wing lawmakers like Zohran Mamdani for their radical, uncompromising demands. “They could solve this in an afternoon if they were willing to stop playing politics with ordinary Americans’ livelihoods,” Johnson argued.

This tactic—using shutdown threats and withheld paychecks as leverage for lifetime welfare and subsidies for illegal immigrants—exposes the hypocrisy at the core of the party’s message. Democrats accuse Republicans of hostage-taking and game-playing, yet are themselves leading the latest shutdown over expansions of the very entitlement culture draining local economies.

A Reckoning for the Granite State

For New Hampshire, known for its fierce independence and tradition of fiscal restraint, the recent events are a reckoning over what state and national leaders actually stand for. The shutdown is more than a pause in federal service—it’s a test of character, priorities, and the future of our communities. Government should never be a weapon. Welfare must be a bridge back to work, not a permanent way of life.

Families, local businesses, and town officials have stepped up where Washington has failed. But as winter nears and budgets tighten, it’s clear that only a return to accountability, discipline, and authentic reform will shield Granite Staters from seeing these failures repeated.

The Republican way—reform over rhetoric, work over welfare, accountability over chaos—is resonating because it simply reflects the values we live by. It’s time for New Hampshire’s leaders to reject the hypocrisy and empty promises of establishment politics and stand up for responsible governance. As the rest of the country begins to catch on, Granite Staters remain a voice for common sense and resilience. Let’s hope Washington listens before it’s too late.

Authors’ opinions are their own and may not represent those of Grok Media, LLC, GraniteGrok.com, its sponsors, readers, authors, or advertisers.

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