Deal or no deal in Congress? Many CA Democrats protest agreement to end shutdown
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- Senate advanced a stopgap bill to reopen government and fund key programs.
- Vote drew bipartisan support to meet cloture while many Democrats opposed.
- Reps. Kiley and Liccardo propose a two‑year subsidy extension with eligibility limits.
The Senate on Monday took important steps to end the federal government shutdown within a few days, as many California Democrats fumed about the crisis-ending deal.
“This deal will do nothing to lower health care costs. I will be voting NO,” said Rep. Doris Matsui, D-Sacramento, in a post on X.
California’s senators echoed those views.
“This fight was primarily about which party was striving to reduce health care costs for the American people,” said Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif.
Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Santa Clara, and some other progressives called for the ouster of Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer of New York. Schumer opposed the deal, but Khanna and others thought he should keep fighting. Schumer has not indicated he has any plans to step down.
“Senator Schumer is no longer effective and should be replaced. If you can’t lead the fight to stop healthcare premiums from skyrocketing for Americans, what will you fight for?” Khanna wrote on X.
In the end, he and many other Democrats said, nothing concrete was done to ease the financial pain that millions are due to endure as health insurance premium subsidies end Dec. 31.
At the same time, some Democrats were teaming up with Republicans to keep the subsidies going.
Reps. Kevin Kiley, R-Roseville, and Sam Liccardo, D-Los Altos, unveiled legislation Monday to extend the credits for two years.
Among the ways they’d pay for the extension by limiting eligibility, notably to families of four with incomes of $192,900 or less, and by “cracking down on excessive Medicare Advantage payouts to insurers.” Medicare Advantage is a comprehensive health care plan used by many recipients.
Congress moves towards the end
The deal moving through the Senate Monday would keep the government open until Jan. 30. It would also provide funding until Oct. 1 for agriculture, veterans, congressional and military construction programs.
President Donald Trump backed the deal Monday. “It depends what deal we’re talking about but if it’s the deal I heard about... certainly we want to change the deal a little bit, but I would say so because based on everything I’m hearing, they haven’t changed anything, and we have support from enough Democrats and we’re going to be opening up our country. Too bad it was closed but we’ll be opening up our country very quickly,” he told reporters.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-South Dakota, told Democrats he would schedule a vote on extending the health care subsidies next month.
All that was enough to convince seven Democratic senators and one independent to join 52 Republicans to provide the 60 needed to move legislation forward. Schiff and Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., are opposed to the bill.
If the measure clears the Senate, it goes to the House, which could meet as soon as Wednesday. Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., seemed confident Monday he had the votes to pass the measure, and said he’s telling members to prepare to return to Washington as soon as possible. The House has not had a voting session since Sept. 19.
Republicans will have a 219-to-214 majority, and some centrist Democrats are expected to support the bill. So far, GOP leaders have made no commitment to vote on extending the health care subsidies.
Matsui, a senior member of the House Energy & Commerce Committee, which considers health care legislation, is ready to fight.
“Now they’re asking families to trust a vague promise of a future vote to lower health care costs. That’s unacceptable. Premiums are skyrocketing. Americans are already stretched thin,” she said in a post on X.
“The Senate’s bill is a bad deal for the American people,” said Rep. Mike Thompson, D-St. Helena.
House Congressional leaders also blasted the deal.
“The bill the Senate is taking up does not fix the health care crisis or make life more affordable for Americans across the country. That’s why I’m voting no,” said House Democratic Caucus Chairman Pete Aguilar, D-San Bernardino.
This story was originally published November 10, 2025 at 10:23 AM.
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