Frank Luntz Warns January Health-Care Shutdown Would Be ‘Very Painful’ for Republicans

Pollster Frank Luntz warned Tuesday that a government shutdown in January over health-care policy would create major political pain for Republicans, arguing voters care most about affordability rather than policy details.

Speaking on CNN’s News Central, Luntz noted that the last shutdown — the longest in U.S. history — initially appeared to hurt Democrats more but ultimately inflicted significant political damage on then-President Trump. He said polling consistently shows a second shutdown would be more damaging to Republicans than Democrats.

What The Polls Show

Host Brianna Keilar cited a KFF health-policy survey during the segment that found 39% of Affordable Care Act enrollees blamed President Trump for failing to extend expiring ACA premium-reduction subsidies; 29% blamed congressional Republicans and 19% blamed Democrats. A separate KFF survey found that 84% of enrollees want Congress to extend those subsidies.

“In the end, we have a significant percentage — millions and millions of people — who cannot afford their health care, and this becomes an issue not just of affordability, but expense,” Luntz said. He added that his polling shows the public believes American health care is simply too expensive, and voters would welcome any plan that meaningfully lowers costs.

Politics And Policy

Republican lawmakers remain divided on how to address the expiring subsidies, while President Trump has pushed for direct health-care payments as one possible approach. Lawmakers face a continuing resolution that expires at the end of January, raising the prospect of a shutdown if no compromise is reached.

Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-Texas) warned she can "see the government shutting down" in January because of partisan fights over health care. Luntz said both parties will likely need to make concessions to reassure Americans facing steep premium increases.

“Democrats are wrong for pushing a government-oriented solution. Republicans are wrong for pushing free markets. Both. We don’t want government bureaucrats determining our health care. We don’t want insurance company bureaucrats. We simply want choice, control, affordability, delivered by the doctors and hospitals we trust,” Luntz said.

Luntz urged politicians to focus on lowering costs and restoring consumer confidence, arguing that voters are less interested in technical policy debates than in whether they can afford care.