Frank Luntz: Health Care Increases Will Be ‘Very Painful for the Republican Party’

Tuesday on CNN’s “News Central,” Republican pollster Frank Luntz said the midterm elections will be “very painful for the Republican Party” if Congress does not pass a solution to the expiring Affordable Care Act subsidies.

Host Brianna Keilar said, “We hear it from Republicans over and over, blaming Obamacare for this. We should note fact checkers have found Obamacare didn’t play that role in hugely increasing insurance premium costs. But of course, we know that doesn’t always factor into whether voters believe something or not. Are voters buying this finger-pointing on Obamacare?

Luntz said, “No and they don’t like it and they resent it. And this is going to play a major role in the 2026 election. The shutdown that we experienced the longest ever in American history, started off hurting Democrats more than Republicans, ended up hurting President Trump more than anybody else. If the government does shut down because they still can’t find a solution to this is going to be very painful for the Republican Party because, as you note, every survey, every poll that’s out there shows that Republicans will be hurt more by this than Democrats. But in the end, it’s not about polling, it’s not about politics or about elections, in the end, we have a significant percentage, millions and millions of people who cannot afford their health care. This becomes an issue not just of affordability, but expense. I know it sounds the same, but the polling that we’ve done, the public thinks that American health care is simply too expensive, and they will be grateful for any solution that brings down that cost.”

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