Nearly two-thirds of Americans want COVID-era federal programs to come to an end, as Democrats demand that any government funding bill include an extension of health care subsidies that were introduced during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new poll. Sixty-one percent of Americans said that the federal government should allow COVID-era subsidies to end, according to a poll conducted last week by the Republican-aligned firm OnMessage Public Strategies, Inc., that was shared with The Daily Wire. Those surveyed were asked whether “the federal government should allow programs that were designed deliberately to address the problems created by the COVID-19 pandemic to sunset, and put those funds to more pressing issues facing Americans.” Thirty-nine percent of those surveyed strongly agreed with the statement, and 22% somewhat agreed, while only 15% strongly disagreed, and another 15% somewhat disagreed, also wanting to keep the COVID-19 Affordable Care Act subsidies alive. The poll surveyed 1,000 Americans. Thirty-eight percent of those polled identified as Republicans, and 33% of the participants identified as Democrats. Another 26% of those surveyed identified as independent. Affordable Care Act subsidies have been a major part of the ongoing government shutdown negotiations on Capitol Hill. Under former President Joe Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, those health care subsidies, that were meant to address issues during COVID, were extended through the end of this year. However, Democrats want the subsidies made permanent, arguing that insurance premiums would skyrocket and low-income Americans would be forced to drop their coverage. The Congressional Budget Office estimated that by 2034, four million people who would have had insurance will be uninsured if the subsidies are not extended. Get 40% off new DailyWire+ annual memberships with code FALL40 at checkout The OnMessage poll found drastically different results than a similar poll conducted by the health policy organization KFF last week. A KFF survey published on October 3 found that 78% of Americans want Congress to extend the Obamacare subsidies, including 59% of Republicans. The KFF poll also found that ending the subsidies could be problematic for Republicans in next year’s midterm elections. Republican leaders, who have opposed Obamacare for years, argue that the subsidies debate should be held closer to the end of the year, after the government has been funded. Republicans, led by President Donald Trump, are also seeking additional ways to reduce government spending. An analysis from the Congressional Budget Office and the Joint Committee on Taxation released last month estimated that a permanent extension of the Obamacare COVID subsidies would increase the federal deficit by $349.8 billion over the next decade, The Hill reported. Both House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) said that discussions over Obamacare subsidies cannot happen while the government remains shut down, urging their Democratic colleagues to focus on agreeing to a temporary funding bill before larger funding debates can be held. “We have effectively three months to negotiate. In the White House and in the halls of Congress, that’s like an eternity,” Johnson said on Monday. Trump said on Monday that he’s open to negotiating with Democrats on the health care subsidies, but added that they must reopen the government before those negotiations take place. “I am happy to work with the Democrats on their Failed Healthcare Policies, or anything else, but first they must allow our Government to re-open. In fact, they should open our Government tonight!” Trump wrote on Truth Social on Monday evening. The Senate failed to pass a funding bill again on Monday night, with the vast majority of Democrats rejecting the Republicans’ continuing resolution.

WASHINGTON—As the government shutdown enters its second week, Republicans are finding new and exciting ways to pin the blame on Democrats. At the Senate Republican member meeting on Tuesday, lawmakers watched a video, exclusively obtained by The Daily Wire, lampooning the “Schumer Shutdown.” EXCLUSIVE: @realDailyWire has obtained a video Senate Republicans watched at today’s member meeting. The video features mariachi music, a recurring theme lately on social media, and a mash up of Senators labeling the ongoing standoff the “Schumer shutdown.” One segment shows… pic.twitter.com/8ctJn2jbOS — Amber Jo Cooper (@AmberJoCooper) October 7, 2025 Set to mariachi music — now the preferred soundtrack to mocking standoffish Democrats, thanks to the White House — the video opens with a clip of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D) struggling with technical difficulties during a CNN hit. “I can’t hear,” Schumer says toward the end of the video, as the word “Sure” flashes on screen. The video is a mashup of Republicans deploying the phrase “Schumer Shutdown,” Republicans’ go-to byword for the funding fight. “While the tone of the video was lighthearted the message was not,” a source who attended the Senate GOP meeting told The Daily Wire. “The video summarized exactly where the fault for this shutdown lies, with Chuck Schumer. While pressure mounts on Senate Democrats, Republicans are feeling emboldened in our fight to reopen the government for the American people,” the source said. Following the meeting, Senate Majority Leader John Thune and House Speaker Mike Johnson spoke to reporters, reiterating Republicans’ call for Senate Democrats to pass their continuing resolution and reopen the government. On Monday night, the Senate held another vote on the House-passed funding bill. It failed by a vote of 52-42. Thune said if a few more Senate Democrats vote with them, they can reopen the government. “Every day that the Democrats keep the government shut down is creating more and worse consequences for the American people,” Thune said. “I think they’re under enormous pressure from their political left. I think they’re under enormous pressure from their leadership, but they’re going to have to be some brave souls who are courageous enough to come out and deliver the votes to open up the government,” Thune said.  Johnson said Schumer “wants to play political games,” noting the House previously passed a “clean” continuing resolution. “They have created a distraction. They’re trying to pretend this is about an end-of-the-year policy decision on healthcare — it is not,” Johnson said. Schumer posted multiple times throughout the day on Tuesday. One X post said Senate Republicans “do not have the votes to pass their bill.” “They need to come to the table and negotiate now to reopen the government and bring down healthcare costs. They’re the only ones who seem to think we can’t do both,” Schumer wrote. He claimed Republicans are “OUTRIGHT LYING about giving undocumented immigrants health insurance through the ACA or Medicaid or Medicare.” “NOT ONE FEDERAL DOLLAR can be spent for this. It’s already illegal. He just wants to distract from how Republicans shut the government down instead of fixing healthcare for the American people,” Schumer said. The back and forth drags on. Another Senate vote is expected on the continuing resolution, but no schedule has been set.

For about 90 minutes on Tuesday, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in a case on a Colorado law that bans counselors from helping gender-confused kids. After the dust had settled, many of the justices, including Justice Samuel Alito, appeared poised to strike down the law after raising questions about free speech and the politicization of science.  The case came to the Court after Christian counselor Kaley Chiles challenged a Colorado law that bans counseling that “attempts or purports to change an individual’s sexual orientation or gender identity.” Chiles argues the law violates her First Amendment rights by preventing her from helping kids with gender identity issues feel comfortable in their own bodies. Several of the justices appeared sympathetic to her free speech claims, even notoriously liberal Justice Elena Kagan.  Leading the charge on the free speech criticism was Alito. The conservative justice criticized Colorado Solicitor General Shannon Stevenson’s argument, noting that the Court rejected a similar argument in a 2018 case over a California law mandating crisis pregnancy centers provide information on how to obtain abortions. Alito pressed Stevenson on free speech throughout oral arguments, at one point presenting her with a hypothetical situation:  One viewpoint is the viewpoint that a minor should be able to obtain talk therapy to overcome same-sex attraction, if that’s what or he or she wants, and the other is the viewpoint that the minor should not be able to obtain talk therapy to overcome same sex attraction, even if that is what he or she wants. Looks like blatant viewpoint discrimination. In response, Stevenson claimed that she believed both situations would be allowable under the Colorado law, because the counselor in those situations would not be looking to “change sexual orientation.” Unsatisfied with that response, Justice Kagan presented Stevenson with a similar hypothetical, saying that it “seems like viewpoint discrimination in the way we would normally understand viewpoint discrimination.” Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Clarence Thomas also raised First Amendment questions. Another telling exchange occurred when Alito pushed Stevenson on the fact that the medical establishment has been wrong in the past. Much of Colorado’s argument hinges on studies that purport to show the harms of so-called conversion therapy, which would encompass encouraging kids not to embrace a transgender identity.  “The medical consensus is usually very reasonable, and it’s very important,” Alito said. “But have there been times when the medical consensus has been politicized, has been taken over by ideology?” Stevenson replied by saying that she didn’t think that was relevant in this case, prompting Alito to observe the widespread support among the scientific community for eugenics and placing all people with Down Syndrome into mental institutions.  In response, Stevenson said that it would be “certainly a concern” if the medical standard of care were not based on patient safety but something else.  “Isn’t that a reason to apply First Amendment scrutiny when what’s being regulated is pure speech and not just saying medical standard of care, medical consensus?” Alito asked.  Another key moment occurred when Alito challenged Colorado’s interpretation of the law as written.  Alito noted that Stevenson claimed that a counselor would be able to help a person “cope” with unwanted sexual attractions, but not move toward any sexual identity changes. He referred to a portion of the text of the law that said “efforts to eliminate or reduce sexual or romantic attraction or feelings toward individuals of the same sex” would be banned under the law. “What I don’t understand is how you can square your interpretation with the plain meaning of the statute,” he said. “Are you suggesting that everything beginning with the word ‘including’ is irrelevant? You just want all of that deleted from the statute?”  Stevenson replied by saying that portion was “illustrative” and that Alito’s scenarios would not be prosecuted under the law.  The decision, which is expected to come over the summer, could impact over two dozen states that have implemented bans on  “conversion therapy.”

A leftist professor was hit with felony charges for her alleged participation in violent anti-ICE riots in Illinois Friday. University of Chicago assistant professor Eman Abdelhadi, who teaches in the department of comparative human development, was charged with two counts of aggravated battery to a government employee, a Class 3 felony, and two counts of resisting/obstructing peace, a Class A misdemeanor, the Cook County Sheriff’s Office told The Daily Wire. She was released on Saturday. Abdelhadi posted a photo of Illinois state police outside an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Broadview, Illinois, on X the day of her arrest with the caption: “Here’s a picture of Illinois state tax dollars going to enforcing Trump’s agenda of terrorizing our community with abductions.” Here’s a picture of Illinois state tax dollars going to enforcing Trump’s agenda of terrorizing our community with abductions. Thanks @GovPritzker! pic.twitter.com/0wfNCBAtb8 — Eman Abdelhadi (@emanabdelhadi) October 3, 2025 She was seen at an anti-ICE demonstration shouting in officers’ faces while donning a shirt reading “FREE PALESTINE” in a video posted to her Instagram. Abdelhadi appeared on “Movement Memos” the day before her arrest, where she shared her experiences participating in anti-ICE protests in Illinois. “These people are terrorizing our communities and they’re setting up shop. I mean, in Broadview, ICE has been setting up shop in our backyard. Just brazenly taking up community resources to terrorize this very same community,” Abdelhadi said. “And so it felt really important to join protesters out there to say, not in our city, not in our name, not in our backyard. This will not go by unnoticed. This will not go by without resistance.” “At this point, you are either on the side of protecting our neighbors and protecting our community, or you’re on the side of this administration. There is no neutral ground in this moment. There’s no center left. You’re either resisting or you’re complicit,” she added. Abdelhadi was investigated by the University of Chicago after she called the school “evil” and “a colonial landlord” at an annual socialism conference on July 5. The anti-Israel professor also posted “Morning Freedom” with a Palestinian flag emoji on the day of the October 7 attack. Eman Abdelhadi: “F*** the University of Chicago… but it’s my best shot at power.” At Socialism 2025, @UChicago professor Eman Abdelhadi called her employer “evil colonial landlord.” Use it. Organize it. Seize its structural leverage. “We don’t have power… but I work at one… pic.twitter.com/Mes06SYMEp — Stu Smith (@thestustustudio) July 6, 2025 The University of Chicago did not immediately respond to a request for comment regarding Abdelhadi’s latest arrest. The Trump administration has deployed 200 Texas National Guard soldiers to Illinois amid an uptick in anti-ICE assaults. On Saturday, Border Patrol agents in the Chicago area were boxed in by a convoy of vehicles. Agents opened fire on one of the alleged attackers after it was determined that she was armed with a semi-automatic weapon. A federal judge declined to block President Donald Trump’s deployment of Texas troops to Chicago Monday, rejecting a lawsuit filed by the state of Illinois challenging the deployment. Meanwhile, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson signed an executive order Monday to create “ICE-free zones” across the city.

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