Trump says he would 'rather not' extend Obamacare tax credits 'at all'

The president said he prefers to let the Affordable Care Act subsidies expire on schedule at the end of December, saying if anything he wants the money to go to "the people directly."

President Donald Trump told reporters Tuesday that he doesn’t want to extend expiring subsidies under Obamacare, also known as the Affordable Care Act, delivering a major blow to prospects of averting sharp premium hikes next year.

“I’d rather not. Somebody said I want to extend them for two years. I don’t want to extend them for two years. I’d rather not extend them at all,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One en route to Florida when he was asked whether he plans to extend the funds.

The White House has refrained from offering a detailed health care plan as up to 22 million people are expected to face higher costs starting in January because of the lapse of ACA funds passed in 2021 and designed to cap premiums.

Voters in key swing states raise concerns over high prices and affordability12:31Trump faces a divided Republican Party, in which many conservatives want the enhanced ACA funds to end after this year. Others, most notably GOP lawmakers in swing districts who are locked in competitive elections, say they want a temporary extension while Congress grapples with a longer-term solution.

The opponents of the funds are winning the battle inside the GOP, and it's far from clear Trump intends to spend political capital to move the needle. Democrats withheld support for government funding to push for extending the money, forcing the longest shutdown in U.S. history as they made it a core demand, but Republicans held firm in opposition to negotiating continuing the subsidies.