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Cruz: Shutdown Driven by Democrat Desire for Free Health Care for Illegals, Schumer’s ‘Political Crisis’
By Jeff Poor
Oct. 16, 2025
Wednesday on FNC’s “Hannity,” Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) argued that Democrat opposition to reopening the federal government was driven by two factors — Democrats seeking to fund health care for illegal immigrants and the in-state politics for Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY).
“Look, I think one of the reasons why the odds of the Democrats taking the House have plummeted is we’ve spent now nine, 10 months with the Democrats embracing one extreme position after another after another,” he said. “They learned nothing from the election in 2024. It’s like every issue across the sun, they picked every 80-20 issue and decided, let’s take the 20 side of it and let’s abandon the middle class. Let’s abandon ordinary working people. And you look at this shutdown now. The shutdown is driven by two things. It’s driven number one by their desire for free taxpayer-provided health care for illegals. That is an extreme. That’s the 20 percent side of an 80- 20. And they’re willing to shut the government down.”
Cruz continued, “But number two, what this is really about is Chuck Schumer is facing a political crisis. He almost lost his job earlier this year when the Democrats agreed to keep the government open. And he’s looking over his left shoulder at AOC. She is breathing down his neck. The reason we are shut down in day 15 of the Schumer shutdown is Schumer is trying to show the radical left he hates Donald Trump as much as they do. And I’ll tell you, two things that that are infuriating. Number one, we voted today the ninth time to reopen the government. Republicans voted over and over and over again to reopen the government. The Democrats voted no. The government, I believe, will stay shut down at least for another week because, as you mentioned, the No Kings rally is on Saturday. And the Democrats are trying to audition for their radical left. They’re afraid that they will be in real trouble with their radicals if they reopen the government.”
“So, for every federal employee across the country who didn’t get a paycheck today on October 15, the reason you didn’t get a paycheck is because Chuck Schumer and the Democrats want to appeal to the radicals at these No Kings rallies,” he added. “Now, number two, just about every one of those Democrats, they’re getting paychecks. Under the 20th Amendment of the Constitution, members of Congress’ compensation cannot change during their term in office. So, they’re all taking their paycheck. Now, I and many other Republicans have sent a letter to the secretary of the Senate saying, ‘Do not pay me. Do not deposit my check into my bank account until this shutdown is over. I’m not going to be paid until every soldier and sailor and airman and marine is paid, until federal employees are paid.’ But the Democrats are being complete and utter hypocrites. And this is a political temper tantrum. And it turns out when you throw political temper tantrums, the voters don’t like it. And I think that explains the plummeting numbers you put up there.”
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From Breitbart
Link:
https://www.breitbart.com/clips/2025...itical-crisis/
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