Former President Donald Trump is blaming Democrats for the ongoing federal government shutdown, while offering no new proposal to address the health care funding stalemate at the heart of the dispute.
In an interview with 60 Minutes that aired Sunday, Nov. 2 — his first since CBS parent company Paramount settled a $16 million lawsuit with Trump over their 2024 interview with then–Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris — the 79-year-old president referred to Democrats as “crazed lunatics” who have “lost their way.” Trump claimed the shutdown will continue until Democrats “give in.”
“We keep voting. I mean, the Republicans are voting almost unanimously to end it, and the Democrats keep voting against ending it,” Trump told Norah O’Donnell during their conversation at Mar-a-Lago. “This has happened like 18 times before. The Democrats always voted for an extension. Always saying, ‘Give us an extension, we’ll work it out.’”
He continued, “I’m not going to do it by being extorted by the Democrats who have lost their way. There’s something wrong with these people.”
Shutdown Nears Record Length
The shutdown, which began Oct. 1, is close to surpassing the 35-day record set during Trump’s first term in 2018–2019. The impasse has left hundreds of thousands of federal employees furloughed and unpaid, while active-duty military and National Guard members remain on duty without pay until the government reopens.
Forty-two million Americans also face uncertainty with November food stamp benefits after the Trump administration announced it would pause the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) on Nov. 1.
At the core of the dispute is funding for health care subsidies under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Democrats seek to extend the subsidies, warning that without them, insurance costs for more than 20 million Americans could double.
Trump Offers No New Health Care Plan
Trump has repeatedly called the ACA “terrible” and “bad health care at far too high a price,” but once again offered no alternative plan.
“We should fix that. Fix it. And we can fix it with the Democrats,” he said. “All they have to do is let the country open and we’ll fix it.”
He added, “[It’s the] Democrats’ fault. All they have to do is raise five hands. We don’t need all of ’em.”
Trump referenced his failed 2017 attempt to repeal the ACA, which was defeated by a single Senate vote. Despite his criticism, he did not outline any specific proposals to replace or reform the law.
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(749x0:751x2):format(webp)/Donald-Trump-60-Minutes-03-110325-232b2d812ead41fb97a2a760ccc0c395.jpg)
“We can make it much less expensive for people and give them much better health care,” he said. “And I’d be willing to work with the Democrats on it. The problem is, they want to give money to prisoners, to drug dealers, to all these millions of people that were allowed to come in with an open border from Biden. And nobody can do that.”
Push to End the Filibuster
Trump also expressed support for ending the Senate filibuster — the so-called “nuclear option” — to advance Republican legislative goals, a move opposed by Senate Majority Leader John Thune.
“The Republicans have to get tougher,” Trump said. “If we end the filibuster, we can do exactly what we want. We’re not going to lose power.”
As for the shutdown, Trump insisted it would soon be resolved. “It’s going to get solved, oh, it’s going to get solved,” he said. “And if [the Democrats] don’t vote, that’s their problem.”
