Senator Susan Collins, a Republican from Maine, is said to be seeking a bipartisan way forward with her fellow lawmakers to end the continuing government shutdown. As the stalemate continues, she has begun circulating a “discussion draft” of her proposal. This draft addresses major concerns and aims to strike a balance with the various requests from both sides of the aisle. This new proposal contains GOP promises to accede to expanded tax credits, an impressive step. Collins is unapologetic about her position. She argues that these negotiations over ACA subsidies need to occur only after Congress adopts a funding resolution to reopen the government.
So far, Collins has shared her still-draft proposal in limited and cherry-picked contexts. This indicates that she still isn’t willing to commit to her Democratic colleagues’ top line demand of an immediate floor extension of ACA subsidies. After months, the ongoing shutdown has raised alarms about its impact on multiple sectors—especially on health care. As a consequence, Collins and her fellow Republicans are under intense pressure to cave to the Democrats’ health care wish list.
The senator was unequivocal in her statements earlier this week. She urged us to leave the really hard health care stuff out of the continuing resolution.
“But we should not have issues that are very complicated that split the Senate attached to the continuing resolution, because all that’s going to do is prolong the shutdown.” – Susan Collins
Collins, along with her colleague Senator Lisa Murkowski, has not signaled any intention to align with Democrats on the funding legislation thus far. Each senator comes to the task with a well-earned reputation for bipartisan collaboration. As moderate Republicans, they’re probably more willing to do business on health care than the more extreme of their colleagues. They must be thinking about how the shutdown will hurt their constituents.
Collins emphasized her worries about the possible consequences of inaction on health care reform, particularly if it comes too late. She argued that some of Democrats’ demands would make the shutdown longer.
“I do think we need an extension, but we also need some reforms, such as a cap on how much income you can earn, and that is totally feasible to do right after we finish keeping government open,” – Susan Collins
As much as Collins was rightly cautious here, she dropped the signal that if the negotiations go south she might be open to the other side. She made it clear that she wanted guarantees from her GOP counterparts that they were serious about fixing what’s broke and unwanted with the ACA.
“We need some assurance that they will deal with this problem, and so far that hasn’t been forthcoming.” – Sen. Angus King
Maine’s needs as a state have become more dire in recent days. Senator Angus King, the independent who caucuses with Democrats, is threatening to withdraw his support for any Republican efforts that fail to adequately address health care impacts.
Collins seems to be reconsidering her position. Read her poignant and thoughtful reflection on the extended shutdown and its effects on the American public and essential health care services. Her proposal aims to strike that balance between GOP priorities and the bipartisan, immediate need for health care conversations. It’s anyone’s guess how her colleagues will receive it.
As these negotiations progresses, Collins finds herself under enormous pressure from Republicans and Democrats. She must navigate complex political dynamics while addressing constituents’ needs in a state that could feel the shutdown’s repercussions more acutely.