Democrats want Obamacare subsidies extended in a shutdown deal. It could help the GOP in the midterms

To avoid a government shutdown, Democrats are urging President Donald Trump and Republicans to agree to extend Obamacare subsidies that expire at the end of the year.

WASHINGTON — On the brink of a shutdown, the top two Democratic leaders met with President Donald Trump in the White House on Monday and urged him to agree to extend Obamacare subsidies that expire at the end of the year in a bill to keep the government open.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said they had to explain the imminent consequences of inaction to Trump. People who get health insurance through Obamacare will begin getting notices in the coming days warning that their premiums will soon go up unless Congress extends the funds.

“He was not aware that Americans would pay — so many Americans, tens of millions of Americans — would pay huge increases in their health care bills,” Schumer told reporters. “And he was not aware that the real effect of that starts Oct. 1st, not Dec. 31st. So it seemed from his body language and some of the things he said that he was not aware of the ramifications.”

“We told the president he can solve the problem” by telling Republican leaders to “just take our provision” to extend the subsidies for Obamacare, or the Affordable Care Act (ACA), and “put it in their bill,” Schumer said.

It has become the central demand of Democrats in exchange for their votes to fund the government, which will shut down Tuesday at midnight unless there is a deal.