Schumer: Trump’s Threats ‘Petty,’ ‘Childish,’ ‘Un-Presidential’

Tuesday on the floor of the U.S. Senate, Minority Leader Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY) said President Donald Trump threats to stop making the cost-sharing payments of the Affordable Care Act were “petty” and “childish and un-presidential.”

Partial transcript as follows:

Stabilizing the individual market is the first thing we should all focus on.The repeated attempts to repeal and replace the health care law, as well as the Administration’s threat to stop making the cost-sharing payments that help keep premiums down and keep markets stable — has injected massive uncertainty into the system. Insurers hate nothing more than uncertainty. It drives them to jack up the cost of premiums and pull out of markets.

Already, insurers in three states have issued two separate sets of proposed rates for 2018 — one if the Administration makes the cost-sharing payments, and one if they do not. The set of proposed rates if the payments are NOT made is 20% higher in all three states. Two of them are North Carolina and Pennsylvania, very significant states. In Idaho, the state insurance commissioner said that rates on the most popular plans would be 50% higher next year because of “the potential refusal by the federal government to fund the cost share reduction mechanism.”

That comes from the State Insurance Commissioner. I don’t know if that’s an elected position, but whether it’s elected or appointed, I’d guess he’s Republican. They don’t elect too many Democrats, out there. Now, the Administration is supposed to announce — today or sometime this week — their decision on whether or not to make the next set of payments. The ball is in the President’s court: he can make the payments as the law requires and needs, or he can sabotage our health care system and impose a Trump Premium Tax of 20% higher premiums on the American people next year by not extending the cost-sharing program.

Why would he do this? Why would he why would he raise people’s rates? Well, his only stated reason is petty, is childish and un-presidential. He’ll get back at people because his hope to repeal and replace was rejected. You don’t hurt innocent people, Mr. President, when you lose politically. That is not presidential. That is not, frankly, what an adult does.

(h/t RCP Video)

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