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WASHINGTON: To hear party leaders talk, the seventh day of the government shutdown sounded a lot like the first. Democrats are seeking negotiations on expiring health care subsidies while Republicans say they won’t discuss it, or any other policy, until the government reopens.
The two sides are also offering starkly different visions of the Affordable Care Act and how to deal with the expanded premium assistance that will soon expire for millions of people — Democrats want the aid extended, while Republicans insist the subsidized health care system is broken and must be cut back.
“Democrats’ position has not changed,” said Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer. “We want the same thing that a majority, an overwhelming majority, of Americans want, which is to end this shutdown and halt the health care crisis that will send premiums spiking for tens of millions of people.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Louisiana, met with Senate Republicans on Tuesday and said the party is “100 percent united,” which he said is “a good place to be in.”
It’s unclear how the impasse will end, even as hundreds of thousands of federal workers are going unpaid and many government services are slowed or suspended. Democrats believe the public is on their side as they fight to keep the COVID-era subsidies, but health care is also one of the most intractable issues in Congress — and a real compromise is unlikely to be easy, or quick.
There are some Republicans in Congress who want to extend the aid as millions of people who receive their insurance through the ACA marketplaces are set to receive notices that their premiums will increase at the beginning of the year. But many GOP lawmakers are strongly opposed to any extension — and see the debate as a new opportunity to try to reform the program.
“If Republicans govern by poll and fail to grab this moment, they will own it,” wrote Texas Rep. Chip Roy, a Republican, in a letter published in The Wall Street Journal over the weekend. He encouraged senators not to go “wobbly” on the issue.
“The jig is up, the pandemic is over and my colleagues shouldn’t blink in any other direction,” Roy wrote.
A long history of health care fights
Republicans have been railing against the Affordable Care Act, former President Barack Obama’s signature health care law, since it was enacted 15 years ago. But while they have been able to chip away at it, they have not been able to substantially alter it as a record 24 million people are now signed up for insurance coverage through the ACA, in large part because billions of dollars in subsidies have made the plans more affordable for many people.
Now, some of them see the Democrats’ fight as their chance to revisit the issue — putting Republican congressional leaders and President Donald Trump in a complicated position.
“I am happy to work with Democrats on their Failed Healthcare Policies, or anything else, but first they must allow our Government to reopen,” Trump wrote on social media Monday night, walking back earlier comments saying there were ongoing negotiations with Democrats.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., told reporters Monday that “there may be a path forward” on ACA subsidies, but stressed, “I think a lot of it would come down to where the White House lands on that.”
Some GOP senators argue, though, that the only path forward is to overhaul the law. “The whole problem with all of this is Obamacare,” said Florida Sen. Rick Scott.
Johnson said there were ongoing talks about “pretty dramatic changes” to the law that Congress might consider once the government reopens.
Bipartisan talks face difficulties
The Senate has now rejected a House-passed bill to extend government funding until mid-November five times, with Democrats denying Republicans the votes to pass it unless they win concessions on health care.
With leaders at odds, some rank-and-file senators in both parties have been in private talks to try to find a way out of the shutdown. Republican Sen. Mike Rounds of South Dakota has suggested extending the subsidies for a year and then phasing them out. Senate Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Susan Collins, R-Maine, has suggested pushing ahead with a group of bipartisan spending bills that are pending and then securing a commitment to discuss the health care issue.
But many Democrats say a commitment isn’t good enough, and Republicans say they need deeper reforms — leaving the talks, and the US government, at a standstill.
Maine Sen. Angus King, an Independent who caucuses with Democrats, voted with Republicans to keep the government open. But he said Monday that he might switch his vote to “no” if Republicans do not “offer some real solid evidence that they are going to help us with this crisis” on health care.
Republican Sen. Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma said his party is “not budging,” however.
“First and foremost, before we can talk about anything, they need to reopen the government,” Mullin said.
Some Republicans urge action on health care
Still, some Republicans say they are open to extending the subsidies — even if they don’t like them — as it becomes clear that their constituents will face rising costs.
“I’m willing to consider various reforms, but I think we have to do something,” said Republican Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri. He said Congress should address the issue “sooner rather than later” before open enrollment begins Nov. 1.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., said she is “not a fan” of Obamacare but indicated she might vote to extend it.
“I’m going to go against everyone on this issue because when the tax credits expire this year my own adult children’s insurance premiums for 2026 are going to DOUBLE, along with all the wonderful families and hard-working people in my district,” she posted on social media Monday evening.
High stakes for federal workers
With both sides digging in, the shutdown could go on for some time, leaving federal workers without their regular paychecks. And the White House is now suggesting that Trump may block back pay if the government reopens.
Trump signed legislation into law in 2019 that ensures back pay for federal workers during any government funding lapse. But a White House memo with the rationale for no back pay is under consideration.
Johnson told reporters Tuesday that he doesn’t know the details of the memo, but “if that is true, that should turn up the urgency and the necessity of the Democrats doing the right thing here.”
Democrats pushed back on the White House rationale. “Federal workers, including furloughed workers, are entitled to their back pay following a shutdown,” said Washington Sen. Patty Murray, the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee.
The White House also said Tuesday that it will use tariff revenue to bolster the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children, which is facing funding shortages because of the shutdown.
Press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a post on X that Trump has “identified a creative solution to transfer resources” from tariffs the administration has imposed on US trading partners. She did not provide details of how such funding transfers might work.

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump on Tuesday promised to treat Canada fairly in talks over painful US tariffs on Canadian goods, but was less committed about a continental trade deal that also includes Mexico.
“I think they’re going to walk away very happy,” Trump said, referring to Canada, in Oval Office remarks ahead of a meeting with Prime Minister Mark Carney. “We’re going to treat people fairly. We’re going to especially treat Canada fairly.”
The Canadian minister in charge of bilateral trade later said the two sides had made progress during what he called a successful, positive, and substantive conversation with Trump, while making clear any potential deals were not close.
“I’m happy and content because I think we have a momentum now that we did not have when we woke up this morning ... but we have not yet finished our work,” Dominic LeBlanc told reporters.
LeBlanc said officials could meet again as soon as Tuesday evening.
Carney, who made his second visit to the White House in five months, this time at Trump’s request, faces increasing pressure to address US tariffs on steel, autos, and other goods.
“ left us very much with the sense that there is a desire to see how we can, starting with the steel and aluminum sectors, structure something that would be in the economic and security interests of both countries,” said LeBlanc, who had said beforehand that a breakthrough was unlikely.
Trump, complaining “we’re the king of being screwed” by trading partners, said Washington would continue to target some Canadian exports.
Carney initially responded to tariffs by pushing for a separate trade and security deal with the United States, but as talks stalled, he focused on a review of the US-Canada-Mexico free trade deal scheduled for 2026.
“We can renegotiate it, and that would be good, or we could just do different deals,” said Trump. “We might make deals that are better for the individual countries.”
Asked for his preference, he replied: “I don’t care. I want to make whatever the best deal is for this country, and also very much with Canada in mind.”
In March, Carney took over as prime minister from Justin Trudeau, who had famously bad relations with Trump.
Carney and Trump have since underlined how well they get on.
“From the beginning, I liked him, and we’ve had a good relationship,” Trump said.
“We have natural conflict. We also have mutual love ... you know we have great love for each other,” he added.
In response, Carney called Trump a transformative president. Trump interrupted Carney as he listed the president’s accomplishments to add: “the merger of Canada and the United States,” drawing laughter from reporters before adding, “I’m only kidding.” Carney, also laughing, responded: “That wasn’t where I was going.”
Canada sends 75 percent of all exports to the United States and is vulnerable to US trade action. Trump said the two countries had agreed to work together on a missile defense shield dubbed Golden Dome.
“There are areas where we compete, and it’s in those areas where we have to come to an agreement that works. But there are more areas where we are stronger together, and that’s what we’re focused on,” said Carney. The prime minister last visited the Oval Office in May, when he bluntly said Canada would never be for sale in response to Trump’s repeated threat to purchase or annex Canada. Since then, he has made numerous concessions, including dropping some counter-tariffs and scrapping a digital services tax aimed at US tech companies.

While most Canadian exports enter the United States duty-free under the USMCA, tariffs have pummeled the steel, aluminum, and auto sectors and a number of small businesses.
Doug Ford, premier of the Canadian industrial province of Ontario, reiterated calls for Carney to be prepared to be tougher with Trump.
“We seem to be weakening our case by continuously pulling off tariffs. I’d take a different approach — try to get a deal. If you can’t, we got to hit him back hard and never stop hitting him back hard,” he told reporters.
Canada’s main opposition leader, Pierre Poilievre, criticizes Carney’s approach, noting the prime minister’s earlier pledge to “negotiate a win” by July 21. He said on Monday it did not look like Carney would accomplish much.
The trade war is straining bilateral ties. Ford in March threatened to cut off electricity exports to New York state and has ordered provincial liquor stores to boycott US alcohol.
Canadians are also shunning travel to the United States. Trump, though, seemed unconcerned.
“I think the people of Canada, they will love us again. Most of them still do,” he said.