Rep. Don Bacon (R-NE) delivered a dire warning for his party in conversation with CNN's Manu Raju on Thursday: if they can't do anything to fix the impending health care cliff, they're going to get slaughtered in the midterms.
Bacon, a relatively moderate GOP member who is retiring from his Democratic-leaning Omaha district, gave this warning as the Senate failed to advance both the Democratic and Republican health care proposals, all but guaranteeing millions of people will see their health insurance premiums spike when the Affordable Care Act expanded subsidies expire at the end of the year.
"All these folks are going to go back home, and you have to look voters in the eye and say, we've done nothing. While their premiums are going up like $2,000 a month. It's not going to happen," said Bacon. "The reality is going to hit here. We got to — to me, it's just basic reality. We need a short-term extension. And then let's talk about some deeper reforms."
"The Speaker [Mike Johnson] seems dead set against this, though," Raju replied.
"Because what he's hearing from a lot of folks, hey, we didn't vote for ACA. We didn't vote for the [Inflation Reduction Act]. This is a Democrat problem," said Bacon. "But we're in charge."
"How bad do you think this will be for Republicans if you do not extend these?" Raju asked him.
"I think it will be used like a sledgehammer," said Bacon. "And a year from now, the reality will be bad."
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