Maxine Waters Absolutely Loses It When Asked About Dems Forced Shutdown Over Health Care for Illegal Aliens [WATCH]

Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) confirmed this week that Democrats were willing to allow a government shutdown in order to secure taxpayer-funded health care coverage that includes illegal immigrants, as reported by The New York Post.

Waters, 87, was pressed outside the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday by reporter Alison Steinberg of LindellTV about whether her party’s stance against a Republican-backed stopgap funding bill was tied to health care demands. The measure would have kept the government funded until November 21.

“Democrats are demanding health care for everybody,” Waters said when asked if her party was pushing coverage for illegal aliens. “We want to save lives. We want to make sure that health care is available to those who would die not having the help of their government.”

When Steinberg followed up, asking if Waters supported a government shutdown to prioritize non-citizens, the congresswoman pushed back.

“That’s what you’re pushing on. You’re standing here, and you’re trying to make me say that somehow we’re going to put non-citizens over Americans. Quit it! Stop it!” Waters said.

WATCH: Maxine Waters Snaps When Asked About Healthcare for Illegal Aliens

When confronted outside the Capitol, Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) was asked if Democrats are willing to shut down the U.S. government to prioritize healthcare for illegal immigrants.

“Quit it. Stop it. This… pic.twitter.com/St7BbBW8wH

— LindellTV (@RealLindellTV) September 30, 2025

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Despite support from House Republicans, the “clean” continuing resolution failed in the Senate after Democratic leaders whipped their members to oppose it.

Only Sens. John Fetterman (D-Pa.), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), independent Sen. Angus King (I-Maine), and Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine) sided with Republicans to keep the government open.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) argued that the GOP bill did not adequately protect Affordable Care Act subsidies scheduled to expire at the end of 2025.

The Trump administration and Republican leaders highlighted that Democrats’ counterproposal included provisions expanding access to taxpayer-funded health care for non-citizens.

“Maxine Waters admitted that she is demanding Healthcare for Illegal Aliens, and it’s going to be Top of the Line, taking American Taxpayers’ Healthcare away from them!” President Trump wrote on Truth Social.

JUST POSTED

President Donald Trump calls out Maxine Waters for prioritizing illegal aliens over Americans. pic.twitter.com/e25hM6c8PK

— Breanna Morello (@BreannaMorello) October 1, 2025

Vice President JD Vance also weighed in during a White House briefing.

“The Chuck Schumer, [Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez] wing of the Democratic Party shut down the government because they said to us ‘We will open the government but only if you give billions of dollars of funding for health care for illegal aliens,’” Vance said.

Democrats have publicly disputed the characterization. Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) told Fox Business Network that the portion of federal health care funding benefiting undocumented immigrants was “such a small portion of the Medicaid cuts or the ACA, if at all.”

Jeffries also denied the charge in a CNN interview, calling it “a lie” that Democrats are prioritizing illegal immigrants in negotiations.

CNN’s Jake Tapper pressed Jeffries further, noting that Democrats’ plan would restore funding for emergency Medicaid to hospitals, which in practice provides coverage for undocumented immigrants.

The Congressional Budget Office reported that between 2017 and 2023, federal and state governments spent $27 billion on emergency Medicaid services for individuals ineligible for full Medicaid due to immigration status.

Provisions in President Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act are set to eliminate non-citizens’ access to these services beginning next year.

The Senate is expected to take another vote on the clean funding resolution Friday. At least five additional Democrats would need to break with party leadership to pass the measure.

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