Swalwell urges Republicans to negotiate and reopen government

(KRON) — Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Livermore) is urging Washington to reopen the government following its shutdown on Wednesday.

Democrats are pushing back against the shutdown, demanding healthcare subsidies to prevent insurance costs from skyrocketing. Swalwell claims the shutdown is a tactic to delay releasing the Jeffrey Epstein files.

“In some ways you can call this an Epstein Shutdown because we had many, many months to avoid the shut down by negotiating with Republicans to avoid it,” said Swalwell at a press conference Wednesday.

Swalwell stated, “But what did Republicans do? During the summer, something I’ve not seen in my 13 years in Washington, they ended the summer early by two weeks to send us home to avoid votes on releasing the Epstein files.”

Swalwell emphasized the real consequences of the shutdown, which he says will impact air traffic controllers, U.S. troops, and the healthcare system. He criticized the “Big Brutal Bill” for taking two million Californians off their healthcare, closing rural hospitals, and hindering cancer research.

Democrats are demanding funding for healthcare subsidies set to expire under the Affordable Care Act, which they argue could drive up premiums for millions nationwide. California State Senator Jerry McNerney and Alameda County Supervisor Elisa Marquez stood alongside Swalwell, expressing solidarity.

McNerney stated, “Don’t believe Donald Trump and his lies about undocumented immigrants, people who are here illegal are no eligible for health care subsidies.”

Marquez echoed similar sentiments, saying, “We’re fighting to keep food stamps, Cal Fresh, medical benefits, services that our community demands, and this president is trying to use immigrants and refugees as a scapegoat, we are not the problem, it’s Republicans are the problem.”

Swalwell pointed out that Republicans hold the keys, controlling the White House, the Senate, and the House. He urged them to negotiate, saying, “The party in charge is the party responsible. If he can get his head in the game and come to the negotiating table and be the great negotiator that he thinks he is, we can get of this.”

All facts in this report were gathered by journalists employed by KRON4. Artificial intelligence tools were used to reformat from a broadcast script into a news article for our website. This report was edited and fact-checked by KRON4 staff before being published.