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Some of the most prominent liberals in Congress are seething at an emerging deal to end the 35-day government funding stalemate without a clear win for Democrats, showcasing a massive splinter within the party that will soon be on full display. The divide among Democrats over strategy offers a gloomy portrait of how a possible deal could land in the broader party — likely spurring ugly infighting at a critical moment in which the party is seeking to define its future ahead of the 2026 midterms. There is still no official agreement within a group of Senate centrists that have been privately meeting to discuss a shutdown exit ramp. But multiple sources involved in discussions told CNN that a deal could be reached as soon as this week to pass a temporary stopgap bill to reopen the government alongside several full-year spending bills — with a promise of a future vote to extend billions in enhanced Obamacare subsidies. This comes, however, after many Democrats have insisted for weeks that the mere promise of a vote would not be enough, pushing instead for an extension of the soon-to-expire subsidies, which have become a central sticking point amid the shutdown. Liberal senators are now warning that the party will lose its leverage, and alienate voters, if it accepts such an offer. “If the Democrats cave on this, I think it would be a betrayal to millions and millions of working families who want them to stand up and protect their health care benefits,” a furious Sen. Bernie Sanders, a Vermont independent told reporters on Tuesday when asked what message the centrist-led talks would send to voters. “I think we’re suckers to believe that a party that is opposed to extending the subsidies now is all of a sudden going to be supportive of that a month from now,” Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut put it plainly, referring to the billions of dollars in enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies that expire next month. It’s not yet clear whether these liberal Democrats will attempt to pressure Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer to scuttle the dealmaking by the centrists or whether he would have any interest in doing so. Schumer hasn’t weighed in publicly on the potential deal, but he and his leadership team took part in a high-stakes, hours-long meeting in the Capitol on Tuesday in which senators discussed the way forward. Multiple senators refused to comment as they left the meeting. And among the centrist Democrats, few are willing to speak publicly about where talks stand with Republicans. Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona told reporters that Democrats were still talking to Republicans and acknowledged the massive gulf between the two parties on health care. “Obviously we’re in different universes on how we’re trying to address this issue of rising costs for people,” Kelly said when asked whether a future vote on ACA subsidies could end the stalemate. “We want to bring down their health care costs, or at least make sure it’s what it was last year. My Republican colleagues and the White House seem not to care about that.” He added: “But, you know, this thing can’t go on forever.” Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine similarly signaled willingness to engage with Republicans on future health care talks — as long as the bill included protections for thousands of federal workers in his own district. “We’ve got to have a path to fixing the ACA, but all the I’s and T’s don’t have to be dotted and crossed,” Kaine said, stressing that his priority in a funding deal was blocking President Donald Trump from freely firing workers and canceling federal projects, rather than a guaranteed extension of the Obamacare subsidies. “Stop the mischief, no more firings, no more furloughs, no more cancellation of projects,” Kaine said. Democratic Sen. Jacky Rosen of Nevada said she wanted to establish a working group to lay out a framework to address the rising cost of health care but didn’t want to state what she would or wouldn’t accept in order to vote to reopen the government. “I’m not going to negotiate in the press,” she told CNN. Still, some Democrats were adamant they would not relent without a clear agreement from Republicans. “A promise ain’t good enough for me,” Sen Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut told CNN.
