Hakeem Jeffries

But the law is very crystal clear in this particular instance, and we are going to make sure that every single federal employee receives the entirety of their pay.

Russell Vogt, the president seemingly fond of calling him Darth Vader, says he's playing budgetary twister as all this unfolds, and that's maybe lessened the pain that some constituents feel as a result of this.

How has that complicated your efforts here, the fact that some government entities are still running, some people are still getting paid, but it's not across the board, it's not universal?

Well of course in any government shutdown it is critical that there are federal employees who are deemed essential in order to allow the country to continue to function as best we can.

But the most comprehensive way forward of course is to make sure that we can negotiate

a spending agreement that makes life better for the American people that we pay every single federal employee by reopening the government.

And that's what Republicans have refused to do.

Donald Trump consistently has chosen not to engage.

Even though we've made our position clear and have held to that position in the House

in the Senate, Senate Democrats being bold and courageous on behalf of the American people to say we have to decisively address the healthcare crisis that impacts people all across the country.

And by the way, David, the reality is Republican constituents are being impacted adversely by the Republican refusal to address the Affordable Care Act tax credit and sanction.

The five states that would be most impacted

are West Virginia, Wyoming, Alaska, Tennessee, and Mississippi.

The next five states are all states currently governed by Republicans.

About 45% of the people who benefit from the Affordable Care Act tax credits apparently are registered Republicans.

Another 35% are Democrats, and the balance are independents or unaffiliated.

This is an American issue, and we're fighting hard on behalf of everyone, everyday Americans, working class Americans, and middle class Americans all across the land.

So fundamentally, is this an issue of trust that you have the Senate Majority Leader saying, look, open the government, we will talk about these subsidies, we'll talk about healthcare.

Are you just unable to trust Republicans at this moment or believe that that would happen were we to go that path?

the American people to trust Republicans, particularly as it relates to the issue of healthcare cost of living.