Ben Mucelis (Ben Mycelis)

Benji, where to next?

Let's talk a lot about what's going on with this government shutdown.

There seems to be no end in sight.

I mean, when Donald Trump and the MAGA Republicans are refusing to even talk with Democrats, yet alone negotiate, and they need Democrat votes to pass the resolution.

Just go back.

Let's make this simple.

Think about your fifth grade government class or whenever you took it, fourth grade or sixth grade.

What we learned, right, is that the parties in a multi-party system or a two-party system need to talk to each other.

So here, where Democrats are trying to talk to Republicans and Republicans saying, we don't want to talk with you, let alone negotiate with you.

We're going to do it on our own.

You can't have a functioning government where that dynamic takes place.

I know we can get more specific, obviously, about what's going on here, but I think that's a fundamental point, and I don't want to just miss the basics.

They're governing like we don't need to actually build consensus and speak to the other group that represents half the country.

We don't want you.

That's very, very, very disturbing as a concept, right?

And then what are the Democrats fighting for here?

An extension of the Affordable Care Act subsidies, like something that's basic.

Whether you're in a red state or a blue state, your healthcare costs are about to skyrocket if these subsidies are not extended.

Donald Trump and the Republicans had Trump's first term to come up with their own healthcare plan, and they've had nine months to come up with one now.

It's not a healthcare plan to just go and say, we're going to reduce prices by 1,600%.