Democrats “caved” on the historic government shutdown fight because they were “blackmailing” Republicans from the get-go, NewsNation contributor Geraldo Rivera said Monday, hours after eight senators crossed party lines to pass a key vote that could restart the federal workforce as soon as this week.
“They caved because they had the losing hand,” Rivera said on Monday’s “The Daily Take” with anchor Connell McShane. “You know, it was the Democrats who added on to the controversy. They took a funding crisis and tried to make it a policy issue.”
The former Fox News host and longtime moderate liberal TV news commentator characterized the Democrats’ play — to get federal Obamacare premium subsidies, passed in 2021 as temporary pandemic relief — extended was akin to blackmailing Republicans.
“You can’t run a government by blackmail,” Rivera added. “There was no spirit of compromise. It was an out-and-out power grab.”
Rivera acknowledged Democrat gains in last week’s elections in Virginia, New Jersey, California and New York, but said just rejecting all things Donald Trump is not a winning strategy, either.
“I think that’s a loser,” Rivera said, adding that Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer is “looking over his shoulder” in the next primary cycle.
“He’s a ruthless pragmatist who’s done a horrible job, I think, in my opinion,” Rivera said. “And I think the Democrats come out of this as embarrassed losers, even though they had a triumph at the ballot box.”
As for subsidizing Obamacare premiums, Rivera acknowledged that “health care is way too crazy expensive,” but says the issue should be separated — as it essentially was with the budget compromise passing the Senate on Sunday night — and dealt with later.
“Open the damn government, get the air traffic controllers back, get all the other folks back at their job, get their paychecks in the mail, get all that done,” he said. “And then if I understand the promise of the Republicans, take up this subsidies [in a vote].”
Watch all of Rivera’s shutdown-ending commentary in the video clip above.
