The next is the transcript of the interview with Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, Democrat of New Hampshire, that aired on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan” on Nov. 16, 2025.
MARGARET BRENNAN: We go now to New Hampshire Democratic Senator Jeanne Shaheen. Good morning to you, Senator.
SENATOR JEANNE SHAHEEN: Good morning. Good to be with you.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Properly you might have spent a superb a part of the previous 12 months attempting to get laws via to increase these Obamacare tax credit score subsidies. Final Sunday, you crossed the aisle. You agreed to reopen the federal government, finish the shutdown and not using a assured extension, however with a promise to have some form of vote on an ACA invoice of Democrats’ personal selecting. Do you might have consensus amongst Democrats that this must be a vote merely to increase the tax credit as they stand now or are you open to a broader reform of Obamacare?
SEN. SHAHEEN: Properly from the start of this shutdown I’ve had two targets. One is to get authorities up and working once more to finish the struggling that too many Individuals have been experiencing as a result of they misplaced meals help or they weren’t getting paid federal staff, and the second was to handle the excessive value of premium- medical insurance that individuals are as a result of insurance coverage corporations are setting charges primarily based on the truth that these premium tax credit are not- are presupposed to go away on the finish of this 12 months. I feel folks at the moment are very conscious of the actual fact that they’re going to see large fee will increase double for thus many individuals, and an unaffordable value of medical insurance if these premium tax credit go away. And what I feel we have to do, and these are conversations that we have to have, is we have to work with our Republican colleagues to try to get a invoice that may be supported. That may get via each homes of Congress the place we have been speaking to our Republicans, Senator Cassidy, all through the shutdown, about what we would be capable to conform to. We have been speaking to Home members on each side of the aisle, and so now we have to work collectively. I agree with Senator Cassidy. This needs to be a invoice that isn’t partisan, nevertheless it needs to be a invoice to increase these premium tax credit, as a result of, as everyone has talked about, there’s actual urgency to get this achieved. And if we do not handle it, then individuals are going to see large fee will increase. —
MARGARET BRENNAN: — Yeah. —
SEN. SHAHEEN: — So we are able to work collectively, we are able to prolong the credit, however we in all probability cannot implement vital reforms that Senator Cassidy was speaking about in the timeframe that we have. So we have to look each within the brief time period and in the long run for a way we handle the price of well being care.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Okay, in order that’s an vital level. So the 26 billion or in order that he talks about as the fee for extension of those that he needs to redirect into these money accounts, these versatile accounts. You are saying you may’t get that achieved in six weeks time.
SEN. SHAHEEN: No, you may’t. —
MARGARET BRENNAN: — Okay. —
SEN. SHAHEEN: — And once more, there’s actual urgency to do that. There’s some good, bipartisan laws that has come out of committee within the Senate that I feel we must always take up. Issues that will expedite approval of generic medicine and biosimilars, that will handle PBM reform, which is a big value improve for well being care, however that is a long term situation. Proper now, we have to handle what individuals are dealing with by way of these excessive fee will increase due to the risk that these premium tax credit are going to finish.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Simply to place a tremendous level on it, after we heard the Congressman on the high of this system speak about, , caps on earnings and restrictions on who can profit from these tax credit. Are you able to get your fellow Democrats, who, by the best way, are fairly indignant at one another, indignant at you as properly, about this choice to reopen the federal government? Are you able to get everybody on board? Or are you able to at the very least get to 60 votes to have the ability to prolong these subsidies with tweaks?
SEN. SHAHEEN: Properly, to begin with, we have to put the shutdown behind us within the round firing squad and bear in mind why we’re on this state of affairs. We’re on this state of affairs as a result of Donald Trump and Speaker Johnson and the Republican majorities within the Home and Senate have refused to handle value, the price of well being care, and try to throw folks off their well being care. Can we get to consensus? Properly, we have to, if we’ll get a bipartisan invoice out of the Congress. I feel we have seen and heard from medical insurance corporations that implementing vital adjustments within the first 12 months goes to be actually troublesome to do, nearly unattainable. However we ought to have the ability to agree on some adjustments like capping the earnings of people that obtain these premium tax credit. Proper now, 94% of people that get the credit earn below $200,000 a 12 months, and the common earnings for a single recipient is about somewhat over $30,000 a 12 months. So most people who find themselves getting these tax credit should not in that prime earnings degree —
MARGARET BRENNAN: — Yeah. —
SEN. SHAHEEN: — And so we must always be capable to agree on that. We must always be capable to agree that we do not need any fraud and abuse in this system. —
MARGARET BRENNAN: — Proper. —
SEN. SHAHEEN: — That is one thing Republicans and Democrats consider in. So let’s concentrate on what we are able to conform to. Let us take a look at what we are able to get achieved in the timeframe now we have, and acknowledge there’s actual urgency to get these premium tax credit prolonged.
MARGARET BRENNAN: So you are going to have this vote across the second week of December, however premiums are already notified out. They’re already —
SEN. SHAHEEN: — Proper. —
MARGARET BRENNAN: — kind of baked in right here for- definitely for Individuals who purchase authorities well being care. Is it too late to increase open enrollment? I imply, Senator Cassidy was saying like ship has sailed right here.
SEN. SHAHEEN: No, we might truly resolve that we have been prepared as a part of this laws to increase open enrollment. Clearly, we’d like assist from the administration, however insurance coverage corporations, in assembly with the insurance coverage trade, they’ve indicated that whereas it might be troublesome, they might handle among the challenges round not getting settlement till December. Once more, that is why there’s urgency to get this achieved.
MARGARET BRENNAN: I need to ask you about one other matter. Survivors of convicted youngster intercourse offender Jeffrey Epstein, in addition to among the households of these survivors, wrote a letter to lawmakers supporting the discharge of Justice Division inside communications in regard to his case. In that letter, they stated there was no center floor right here. There was no hiding behind social gathering affiliation. We’ll bear in mind your choice on the poll field. You already know, this Home vote is about to come back up this week. Ought to there be a vote within the Senate? And would you assist it, to see the discharge of those paperwork?
SEN. SHAHEEN: Completely. We have to launch the paperwork. The American folks have to see what’s in them. And if President Trump says there’s nothing there that he is involved about, then why would not he assist launch of the paperwork?
MARGARET BRENNAN: Properly, we are going to see if the Republican chief within the Senate takes up your proposal there. There has not been a dedication to have that form of vote. However on Venezuela, since you’re rating member on Senate Overseas Relations, I need to ensure that I ask you, the President stated he has kind of made up his thoughts on what to do about Venezuela. You have been one of many only a few senators who’ve acquired briefings throughout the previous few weeks from Secretaries Rubio and Hegseth concerning the strikes which are being carried out on these small, fast-paced boats. Is there a transparent finish sport right here and is your understanding that ousting Nicolas Maduro from energy is a part of the administration’s plan?
SEN. SHAHEEN: I do not assume it is clear what the top sport is for this administration with respect to Venezuela. They’re counting on a authorized opinion, excuse me, by way of the boat strikes that they haven’t launched. They’ve lastly made it accessible to members of Congress, however they have not launched it to the general public. They’re escalating in a approach that speaking a couple of land strike via particular operations that places in danger our women and men within the army. We’ve got a lot firepower now within the Caribbean, the Gerald R. Ford has been taken from the Purple Sea, in order that now we haven’t any firepower, actually, within the Center East as we have a look at the threats there. We do not have what we’d like, I feel, within the Indo-Pacific or in Europe. And so what the President has achieved right here is to place in danger different components of the world and Individuals in different components of the world for this fascination on attempting to do away with Nicolás Maduro in Venezuela, who clearly is —
MARGARET BRENNAN: — Yeah. —
SEN. SHAHEEN: — a foul character. He is been concerned in drug —
MARGARET BRENNAN: — Yeah. —
SEN. SHAHEEN: — unlawful medicine. However he isn’t a risk to the US of America. —
MARGARET BRENNAN: — Okay. —
SEN. SHAHEEN: — And what the President is doing is elevating actual questions.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Senator Shaheen, thanks to your time this morning. We’ll be again in a second.
