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 may have spent a very good a part of the previous yr making an attempt 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 with out a assured extension, however with a promise to have some sort of vote on an ACA invoice of Democrats’ personal selecting. Do you may 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 operating once more to finish the struggling that too many People had been experiencing as a result of they misplaced meals help or they weren’t getting paid federal workers, and the second was to deal with the excessive value of premium- medical health insurance that individuals are taking a look at as a result of insurance coverage firms are setting charges primarily based on the truth that these premium tax credit are not- are speculated to go away on the finish of this yr. I believe folks at the moment are very conscious of the very fact that they will see big fee will increase double for therefore many individuals, and an unaffordable value of medical health insurance if these premium tax credit go away. And what I believe we have to do, and these are conversations that we have to have, is we have to work with our Republican colleagues to attempt to get a invoice that may be supported. That may get via each homes of Congress the place we’ve been speaking to our Republicans, Senator Cassidy, all through the shutdown, about what we’d be capable to comply with. We’ve 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’s not 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 don’t tackle it, then individuals are going to see big fee will increase. —
MARGARET BRENNAN: — Yeah. —
SEN. SHAHEEN: — So we will work collectively, we will lengthen the credit, however we in all probability can’t implement vital reforms that Senator Cassidy was speaking about in the timeframe that we’ve obtained. So we have to look each within the brief time period and in the long run for the way we tackle the price of well being care.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Okay, in order that’s an necessary level. So the 26 billion or in order that he talks about as the price for extension of those that he needs to redirect into these money accounts, these versatile accounts. You’re 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 believe we must always take up. Issues that might expedite approval of generic medicine and biosimilars, that might tackle PBM reform, which is a big value improve for well being care, however that’s a long run problem. Proper now, we have to tackle what individuals are dealing with when it comes to these excessive fee will increase due to the risk that these premium tax credit are going to finish.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Simply to place a advantageous level on it, once we heard the Congressman on the prime of this system speak about, you realize, caps on earnings and restrictions on who can profit from these tax credit. Are you able to get your fellow Democrats, who, by the way in which, are fairly indignant at one another, indignant at you as effectively, about this choice to reopen the federal government? Are you able to get everybody on board? Or are you able to a minimum of get to 60 votes to have the ability to lengthen these subsidies with tweaks?
SEN. SHAHEEN: Properly, to begin with, we have to put the shutdown behind us within the round firing squad and keep 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 deal with value, the price of well being care, and are attempting to throw folks off their well being care. Can we get to consensus? Properly, we have to, if we’re going to get a bipartisan invoice out of the Congress. I believe we’ve seen and heard from medical health insurance firms that implementing vital adjustments within the first yr goes to be actually tough 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 yr, and the typical earnings for a single recipient is about somewhat over $30,000 a yr. So most people who find themselves getting these tax credit aren’t in that prime earnings degree —
MARGARET BRENNAN: — Yeah. —
SEN. SHAHEEN: — And so we must always be capable to agree on that. We should always be capable to agree that we don’t need any fraud and abuse in this system. —
MARGARET BRENNAN: — Proper. —
SEN. SHAHEEN: — That’s one thing Republicans and Democrats consider in. So let’s deal with what we will comply with. Let’s have a look at what we will get achieved in the timeframe we’ve, and acknowledge there’s actual urgency to get these premium tax credit prolonged.
MARGARET BRENNAN: So that you’re 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: — type of baked in right here for- actually for People 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 really resolve that we had been keen as a part of this laws to increase open enrollment. Clearly, we want help from the administration, however insurance coverage firms, in assembly with the insurance coverage trade, they’ve indicated that whereas it might be tough, they may tackle among the challenges round not getting settlement till December. Once more, that’s why there’s urgency to get this achieved.
MARGARET BRENNAN: I need to ask you about one other matter. Survivors of convicted little one intercourse offender Jeffrey Epstein, in addition to among the households of these survivors, wrote a letter to lawmakers supporting the discharge of Justice Division inner communications in regard to his case. In that letter, they stated there was no center floor right here. There was no hiding behind occasion affiliation. We’ll keep 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 help it, to see the discharge of those paperwork?
SEN. SHAHEEN: Completely. We have to launch the paperwork. The American folks must see what’s in them. And if President Trump says there’s nothing there that he’s involved about, then why doesn’t he help launch of the paperwork?
MARGARET BRENNAN: Properly, we’ll see if the Republican chief within the Senate takes up your proposal there. There has not been a dedication to have that sort of vote. However on Venezuela, since you might be rating member on Senate Overseas Relations, I need to be sure that I ask you, the President stated he has type of made up his thoughts on what to do about Venezuela. You had been one of many only a few senators who’ve obtained briefings throughout the previous few weeks from Secretaries Rubio and Hegseth relating to the strikes which might be being carried out on these small, fast-paced boats. Is there a transparent finish recreation right here and is your understanding that ousting Nicolas Maduro from energy is a part of the administration’s plan?
SEN. SHAHEEN: I don’t suppose it’s clear what the tip recreation is for this administration with respect to Venezuela. They’re counting on a authorized opinion, excuse me, when it comes to the boat strikes that they haven’t launched. They’ve lastly made it obtainable to members of Congress, however they haven’t launched it to the general public. They’re escalating in a approach that speaking a few land strike via particular operations that places in danger our women and men within the army. We have now a lot firepower now within the Caribbean, the Gerald R. Ford has been taken from the Crimson Sea, in order that now we don’t have any firepower, actually, within the Center East as we have a look at the threats there. We don’t have what we want, I believe, 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 People in different components of the world for this fascination on making an attempt to do away with Nicolás Maduro in Venezuela, who clearly is —
MARGARET BRENNAN: — Yeah. —
SEN. SHAHEEN: — a foul character. He’s been concerned in drug —
MARGARET BRENNAN: — Yeah. —
SEN. SHAHEEN: — unlawful medicine. However he isn’t a risk to the USA of America. —
MARGARET BRENNAN: — Okay. —
SEN. SHAHEEN: — And what the President is doing is elevating actual questions.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Senator Shaheen, thanks in your time this morning. We’ll be again in a second.
Face The Nation TranscriptsMore
Full transcript of “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan,” Nov. 16, 2025
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Transcript: Sen. Invoice Cassidy on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan,” Nov. 16, 2025
Transcript: Sen. Jeanne Shaheen on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan,” Nov. 16, 2025
Transcript: Sen. Invoice Cassidy on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan,” Nov. 16, 2025
