'Complete fraud': GOP lawmakers splitting over key issue behind looming shutdown

What appears on the surface as Republican unity in the looming budget showdown is cracking behind closed doors: the GOP is deeply divided over whether to extend health insurance subsidies created under the Affordable Care Act.

As Congress teeters on the brink of a government shutdown, many Republican leaders are insisting that they will not even discuss reviving the Affordable Care Act's (ACA) “premium tax credits” while federal agencies are shuttered. But some Republicans believe that position may no longer hold, Politico reported Tuesday.

The report noted that during a White House meeting on Monday, moderate Democrats say they came away convinced President Donald Trump is willing to broker a deal on the expiring subsidies. That possibility has already sparked open dissent from conservative Republicans who have long opposed the ACA in all its forms.

Sen. Rick Scott (R‑Fla.) told Politico: “The right proposal is to let them expire.”

“It’s been a complete fraud. People don’t even know they have these policies. So the right thing is to let them expire," he added.

Rep. Chip Roy (R‑Texas), a leading member of the hard‑right House GOP wing, added via social media: “We’ve never voted for them. We shouldn’t now. Do. Not. Blink.”

However, Vice President JD Vance, speaking after the White House meeting, suggested Republicans and Democrats “work on it together,” so long as negotiations happen in the “context of an open government.”

And marginalized members of Republican House and Senate factions are quietly preparing to support a reauthorization should Trump step into the breach.

Some of that internal pressure is fueled by political risk, per the report. Analysts and polling operatives warn that allowing the subsidies to lapse could produce sticker shock for millions of Americans and hand Democrats electoral ammunition heading into 2026.

More than a dozen moderate House Republicans are actively pushing for a one‑year extension of the credits, while GOP senators are exploring proposals that would extend the benefits under new limits or eligibility rules.

Many lawmakers are relieved that Trump is signaling willingness to engage ahead of the Nov. 1 open enrollment period, when insurers finalize plans for 2026.

For now, Republican leaders like Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) are resisting efforts to tie the subsidy fight to the shutdown battle. Johnson dismissed Democrats’ demands as a “red herring,” saying, “We’re happy to sit down … but we can’t do that in context of a hostage situation.”

Yet with word spreading that Trump might be open to compromise, some in the GOP are privately weighing support for subsidy talks — even if they remain publicly cautious.

Rep. Warren Davidson (R‑Ohio), a longtime opponent of extending the credits, admitted that he would trust Trump “if he engages.”

Rep. Morgan Griffith (R‑Va.) cautioned that while he opposes negotiating during a shutdown, he favors a “glide path” away from full subsidy funding in future years.