Millions of Trump voters 'are about to get punched in the face': senator

Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) is calling attention to one consequence of the weeks-long government shutdown that's about to impact the finances of millions of President Donald Trump's supporters: Rising health insurance premiums.

During a Tuesday interview with The Bulwark's Sam Stein, Kelly pointed out that as the open enrollment period starts on Saturday, Americans will likely be in for significant sticker shock when shopping for new health insurance plans. He particularly heaped blame on House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) for sending the House out on a "six-week paid vacation" rather than keeping the House in session to negotiate an end to the shutdown.

"They haven't been back here in six weeks. They have abdicated their responsibilities under the Constitution," Kelly said. "They're not doing their jobs ... There are 23 million Americans who, on November 1, are gonna get punched in the face with a skyrocketing healthcare bill."

"I've spoken to many of them in Arizona. There are going to be people that are paying $250 or $300 who are going to be paying $1,100 or $1,200," he continued.

Kelly then observed that the cost difference was even more substantial in Republican-controlled states. He recalled a conversation with Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) in which he was taken aback by the amount of money red state residents were going to have to pay if the Affordable Care Act (ACA) tax credits that are expiring at the end of 2025 aren't renewed (Democrats have made ACA tax credits a sticking point in exchange for their support of a government funding bill).

"I thought it was kind of a rumor. And I said to Lisa, 'hey, is it true that people re getting letters saying their healthcare premium is going to go up from $600 to $4,000 a month? No, come on,' and she said 'yes, that is true that people in Alaska are going to see those increases,'" Kelly told Stein. "We're going to see people with increases of 200, 300, 400 percent, right? And these people can't afford it."

Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) previously warned of the sky-high cost red state residents would be facing if the ACA premiums aren't renewed. In addition to premiums rising by 346 percent in Alaska, they're also projected to go up by 150 percent in Louisiana; 314 percent in Mississippi; 235 percent in South Dakota; 320 percent in Tennessee; 387 percent in West Virginia and 382 percent in Wyoming.

Watch the segment below:

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