Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota says Democrats are united on affordability and is calling on the president to help end the shutdown.
Sasha Pfeiffer, host:
It’s day 39 of lockdown. The Senate held a rare session on Saturday, but so far, there is no clear path to reopening the government. Republicans have called the Democratic proposal to extend health care tax credits for one year “unsuccessful.” Meanwhile, the effects are being felt across the country from kitchens and grocery stores to airports.
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UNIDENTIFIED ANNOUNCER: Passengers can board the plane here at Gate 40.
PFEIFFER: Earlier this week, like many others, I got caught up in the chaos of air traffic turbulence. My flight from Boston to DC was delayed four times, and finally left the next day 10 and a half hours late. Once I finally arrived at Washington National Airport, I spoke with other passengers about their travel experiences just as the FAA began reducing service at major airports across the country. Irene Oganesyan lives in Dallas but travels to D.C. frequently.
Irene Oganesyan: Being someone who travels a fair amount for work, and my husband travels a lot for work, and we have two young kids, it’s a little nerve-wracking because we don’t have a lot of support at home. So, if one of us gets stuck, that’s obviously not cool.
PFEIFFER: Sandy Armstrong was waiting for a flight to Savannah, Georgia, and said the airport’s log jam might force Congress to act, though her friend Susan Batey wasn’t so sure.
SANDY ARMSTRONG: This might get the attention of more people who can do something about it, which would be nice. And then maybe they will come to the table.
SUSAN BATTY: I just want to express that people in the country are being affected in many ways, and that doesn’t seem to be a priority for either party.
Pfeiffer: As the shutdown continues into its sixth week, how are Democrats responding to the growing fallout? Joining me now is Democratic Senator Amy Klobuchar. Senator, welcome back to All Things Considered.
AMY KLOBUCHAR: Thanks, Sasha. Thank you for having me on this important day.
PFEIFFER: The last person we heard from who made the comment that many Americans are being affected by this shutdown in many ways, but ending the shutdown doesn’t seem to be a priority for either party – what do you think about that characterization?
KLOBUCHAR: Senate Democrats have been here week after week over the weekends, trying to get this done and get Donald Trump to the table. And unfortunately, while Americans are delaying their flights, they’re having a hard time getting home, and House Republicans have, for seven weeks, been on an extended vacation at home, we believe that when you look at past budget impasses and shutdowns, the president has to play a role, especially in this case when they’re running all three branches of government.
So, we’re dealing with the most pressing problem, which is Affordable Care Act plans. And so what we would like to see change now is to continue the tax credits that help people afford their insurance premiums. This is in place. All they need to do is extend their term, and Democrats — from liberal to conservative Democrats — have suggested let’s just make it one year. During that period, we will have a bipartisan commission to work on reform ideas that Republicans have proposed implementing because the tax credits will expire at the end of the year for the next filing period. But we think this is as reasonable as possible.
PFEIFFER: In response to this proposal, Republicans say, no, open the government first, and then we’ll negotiate the tax breaks. This is where things stand?
Klobuchar: They’ve been saying this forever, but the bottom line is they refused to even meet with us. They talk about not paying federal workers. We want to pay these workers. But they won’t demand the bill, and the House won’t come back, so we can’t vote on it.
PFEIFFER: But in the meantime, SNAP benefits have stopped. It wasn’t enough to make the two sides find a way to break the stumps jam. Now we have the potential for terrible flight congestion – business travelers and leisure travelers going to Thanksgiving. Do you feel that with the travel issues inevitably getting worse, will that be enough to make both parties finally figure out how to resolve this issue?
KLOBUCHAR: The president has refused to come to the table, so we’re waiting. We think at some point he will have to.
Pfeiffer: At what point would that be?
KLOBUCHAR: He’s going to have to negotiate.
Pfeiffer: What’s the point of that?
Klobuchar: You should ask him. He should be responsible for coming to help people with their health care premiums. We just had an election on Tuesday night, and this issue, along with other costs, has emerged as the number one issue for the people of this country. And people voted for Democrats in states like Mississippi, statewide, and non-federal offices in Georgia that Democrats never won in 20 years because of electricity prices in that state.
Pfeiffer: Right. So affordability is a major domestic issue, and Tuesday was a good day for Democrats. It seems that a lot of people are bothered by the cost of many things. So that was good for Democrats. On the other hand, they will have to continue to deal with hot-button social issues. This was a big problem too. How do you think they’ll find the balance between staying focused on affordability and deciding how to deal with the pushback that Democrats are experiencing, criticism that has been so effective for Republicans?
Klobuchar: I think one example is how we’ve stayed united and focused on the issue of affordability when it comes to health care. We have done this from the most liberal members of our party to the most conservative members. We have done this in every state in the country.
PFEIFFER: Question for you in New York City – the mayor-elect, Zahran Mamdani, said he would tax the wealthy. We know that because there are many legal ways wealthy people can avoid paying taxes, the wealth gap is likely to continue to widen. Is taxing the rich something Democrats can accept?
KLOBUCHAR: We were really concerned about what Republicans in Washington did when it came to tax breaks for the wealthy. Half of the money in the Big Beautiful Treason Bill — 2 trillion of which went either to big corporations or to the very wealthy, whether millionaires or billionaires. That’s what we’ve made our main issue this summer, so I’m not surprised that this is also an issue in other races, local races around the country. But part of that is because the tax system has been too rigged against the middle class for too long.
PFEIFFER: Another big picture question about the shutdown – Democrats blame Republicans, Republicans blame Democrats, but many Americans feel a general disgust with their elected officials and the U.S. government regardless of party. How far do you think we are past the point of turning back on this, or what can be done to restore people’s confidence in the political process?
KLOBUCHAR: I always think you have to find common ground wherever you can. I believe that courage is not just standing alone. Courage is whether or not you are willing to stand up for someone you don’t always agree with for the betterment of this country.
PFEIFFER: But do you think the American public believes this is possible anymore, that there’s enough common ground in elected officials?
Klobuchar: I think they see that in some local officials. I always tell local mayors that they are on the front line of trust now because people have lost confidence in a lot of what is happening at the national level. I am well aware of that. So I think the way you do that is to find common ground on an individual basis.
PFEIFFER: Senator Amy Klobuchar, thank you for speaking with us.
Klobuchar: It was great to be there. Thank you.
Pfeiffer: While the Senate was in session today, President Trump was active on his Social Truth platform. He is urging Senate Republicans to cut Affordable Care Act subsidies so that, in his words, Americans can buy much better health care of their own.
Stay with NPR on the radio and online as we continue to cover the debate over health care insurance subsidies and bring you the latest news on the government shutdown.
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