Pelosi Drops F-Bomb in Shutdown Fight as Dems Demand Healthcare for Illegals
With just days before a possible government shutdown, Democrats escalated tensions by tying a stopgap spending bill to their healthcare agenda—culminating in a profanity-filled outburst from former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi during an NBC interview.
Pelosi defended her party’s insistence that any short-term funding measure include Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies and restored Medicaid funding. Asked whether talks at the White House would yield progress, she unloaded on Republican proposals.
“What we’re talking about is meeting the health care needs of the American people, little babies, moms with breast cancer, dads with a stroke, and all of that,” Pelosi said. “The President has said, I hear what they’re saying. It’s all unserious and ridiculous. In fact, I’ve listened to their sh*t, and I tell them to go f** themselves.”
Pelosi then tried to brush off the coarse language, remarking, “I can’t believe I use that word. My kids will be shocked. My grandchildren will be further shocked. I’m just quoting the President of the United States.”
Her remarks came as congressional leaders scrambled to meet a September 30 midnight deadline. The Republican-led House has already passed a continuing resolution (CR) to keep the government funded into late November. But Senate Democrats have blocked it, refusing to back a “clean” bill that leaves healthcare fights for later.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries doubled down Thursday: “We will not support a partisan spending agreement that continues to rip away health care from the American people, period, full stop.” Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer echoed him, demanding Republicans meet Democrat priorities: “What the Republicans are proposing is not good enough for the American people and not good enough to get our votes.”
Democrats are demanding two major concessions before supporting any spending bill: an extension of ACA tax credits—expanded under Joe Biden in 2022—and a reversal of Medicaid cuts passed earlier this summer as part of the GOP’s “One Big Beautiful Bill.”
Republicans insist the dispute has nothing to do with funding the government and argue that healthcare negotiations should be handled separately. Senate Majority Leader John Thune told Punchbowl News that Democrats are leveraging the shutdown deadline for political gain: “I think their base is clamoring for that. They want a fight with the Trump administration. But they don’t have a good reason to do it. And I don’t intend to give them a good reason.”
President Donald J. Trump made clear last week he backs a short-term extension without strings attached. “We have to get Republican votes. That’s it. If we do, we have the majority,” Trump said. He warned Republicans not to waste time chasing Democrat approval, insisting Democrats would refuse to support a deal “even if you gave them every dream.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson has signaled he wants to avoid a shutdown but acknowledged Senate Democrats remain the obstacle. House Appropriations Chair Tom Cole has also been preparing a package of three spending bills alongside the CR, stressing Republicans are not attempting to “jam” Democrats but warning against what he called a Democratic “temper tantrum.”
“I think shutting down the government in a temper tantrum is not going to be helpful to the country. I don’t think it’s going to be good for them, either, but that’s up to them,” Cole said.
With Congress scheduled to recess for Rosh Hashanah, lawmakers won’t return until September 29—just two days before the shutdown deadline. Leadership has hinted the calendar may be extended to allow more time, but with Pelosi’s tirade setting the tone, negotiations appear as volatile as ever.