{"id":1056558,"date":"2025-10-16T16:26:33","date_gmt":"2025-10-16T20:26:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/?p=1056558"},"modified":"2025-10-16T16:26:34","modified_gmt":"2025-10-16T20:26:34","slug":"breaking-mike-johnson-cowers-from-debate-with-hakeem-jeffries-as-millions-of-americans-brace-for-skyrocketing-health-care-premiums","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/breaking-mike-johnson-cowers-from-debate-with-hakeem-jeffries-as-millions-of-americans-brace-for-skyrocketing-health-care-premiums\/","title":{"rendered":"BREAKING: Mike Johnson Cowers from Debate with Hakeem Jeffries As Millions of Americans Brace for Skyrocketing Health Care Premiums"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

After initially agreeing<\/a> to debate House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, House Speaker Mike Johnson is saying he won\u2019t debate Jeffries until the Republican government shutdown is over. But Johnson refuses<\/a> to bring the House back into session to reopen the government so that he can continue to avoid fixing the looming health care crisis \u2014 and answering Americans\u2019 questions in a debate \u2014 which will cause health care premiums to spike for 22 million Americans by an average of 114%. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In response, DNC Rapid Response Director Kendall Witmer released the following statement: <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMike Johnson knows that Americans overwhelmingly blame Trump and Republicans for this government shutdown, and that\u2019s why he\u2019s avoiding a face-off with Leader Jeffries. If Johnson is so confident in his approach to funding the government, he would agree to an immediate debate \u2014 and he\u2019s got the time since he and his Republican colleagues are refusing to show up for work. But Johnson knows that if he gets on the debate stage, he\u2019ll be held to account for the Republican crusade to hike health care costs for millions of working families.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s no wonder Johnson won\u2019t debate with Jeffries until after the shutdown \u2014 Republicans are dramatically losing the shutdown fight. A new poll found that 8 in 10<\/a> Americans want the enhanced ACA tax credits to be extended, including most Republicans, and Americans blame<\/a> Trump and Republicans for the shutdown by a 10-point margin. Nonetheless, Republicans are prioritizing their billionaire donors \u2014 spending more than 10 times the cost of enhanced ACA tax credits on a permanent tax cut for the ultrarich.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

After initially agreeing to debate House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, House Speaker Mike Johnson is saying he won\u2019t debate Jeffries until the Republican government shutdown is over. But Johnson refuses to bring the House back into session to reopen the government so that he can continue to avoid fixing the looming health care crisis \u2014 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":302,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1056558","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-press-release"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nBREAKING: Mike Johnson Cowers from Debate with Hakeem Jeffries As Millions of Americans Brace for Skyrocketing Health Care Premiums - Democrats<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/breaking-mike-johnson-cowers-from-debate-with-hakeem-jeffries-as-millions-of-americans-brace-for-skyrocketing-health-care-premiums\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Democrats\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-10-16T20:26:33+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-10-16T20:26:34+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Black-Logo-White-Fill-For-Email.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1101\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"483\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Tristin Byrd\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Tristin Byrd\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/breaking-mike-johnson-cowers-from-debate-with-hakeem-jeffries-as-millions-of-americans-brace-for-skyrocketing-health-care-premiums\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/breaking-mike-johnson-cowers-from-debate-with-hakeem-jeffries-as-millions-of-americans-brace-for-skyrocketing-health-care-premiums\/\",\"name\":\"BREAKING: Mike Johnson Cowers from Debate with Hakeem Jeffries As Millions of Americans Brace for Skyrocketing Health Care Premiums - Democrats\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/breaking-mike-johnson-cowers-from-debate-with-hakeem-jeffries-as-millions-of-americans-brace-for-skyrocketing-health-care-premiums\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/breaking-mike-johnson-cowers-from-debate-with-hakeem-jeffries-as-millions-of-americans-brace-for-skyrocketing-health-care-premiums\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Black-Logo-White-Fill-For-Email.png?w=1024\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-10-16T20:26:33+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-10-16T20:26:34+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/#\/schema\/person\/a4b0f14063c9a4041c6aca7889e98842\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/breaking-mike-johnson-cowers-from-debate-with-hakeem-jeffries-as-millions-of-americans-brace-for-skyrocketing-health-care-premiums\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/breaking-mike-johnson-cowers-from-debate-with-hakeem-jeffries-as-millions-of-americans-brace-for-skyrocketing-health-care-premiums\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/breaking-mike-johnson-cowers-from-debate-with-hakeem-jeffries-as-millions-of-americans-brace-for-skyrocketing-health-care-premiums\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Black-Logo-White-Fill-For-Email.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Black-Logo-White-Fill-For-Email.png\",\"width\":1101,\"height\":483},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/breaking-mike-johnson-cowers-from-debate-with-hakeem-jeffries-as-millions-of-americans-brace-for-skyrocketing-health-care-premiums\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"BREAKING: Mike Johnson Cowers from Debate with Hakeem Jeffries As Millions of Americans Brace for Skyrocketing Health Care Premiums\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/\",\"name\":\"Democrats\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/#\/schema\/person\/a4b0f14063c9a4041c6aca7889e98842\",\"name\":\"Tristin Byrd\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/98255192fca3fed639d1477004e2837682d86427b0f3a51fbf262516e81a7d88?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/98255192fca3fed639d1477004e2837682d86427b0f3a51fbf262516e81a7d88?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Tristin Byrd\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/author\/byrdt\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"BREAKING: Mike Johnson Cowers from Debate with Hakeem Jeffries As Millions of Americans Brace for Skyrocketing Health Care Premiums - Democrats","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/breaking-mike-johnson-cowers-from-debate-with-hakeem-jeffries-as-millions-of-americans-brace-for-skyrocketing-health-care-premiums\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_site_name":"Democrats","article_published_time":"2025-10-16T20:26:33+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-10-16T20:26:34+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1101,"height":483,"url":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Black-Logo-White-Fill-For-Email.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"Tristin Byrd","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Tristin Byrd","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/breaking-mike-johnson-cowers-from-debate-with-hakeem-jeffries-as-millions-of-americans-brace-for-skyrocketing-health-care-premiums\/","url":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/breaking-mike-johnson-cowers-from-debate-with-hakeem-jeffries-as-millions-of-americans-brace-for-skyrocketing-health-care-premiums\/","name":"BREAKING: Mike Johnson Cowers from Debate with Hakeem Jeffries As Millions of Americans Brace for Skyrocketing Health Care Premiums - Democrats","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/breaking-mike-johnson-cowers-from-debate-with-hakeem-jeffries-as-millions-of-americans-brace-for-skyrocketing-health-care-premiums\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/breaking-mike-johnson-cowers-from-debate-with-hakeem-jeffries-as-millions-of-americans-brace-for-skyrocketing-health-care-premiums\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Black-Logo-White-Fill-For-Email.png?w=1024","datePublished":"2025-10-16T20:26:33+00:00","dateModified":"2025-10-16T20:26:34+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/#\/schema\/person\/a4b0f14063c9a4041c6aca7889e98842"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/breaking-mike-johnson-cowers-from-debate-with-hakeem-jeffries-as-millions-of-americans-brace-for-skyrocketing-health-care-premiums\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/breaking-mike-johnson-cowers-from-debate-with-hakeem-jeffries-as-millions-of-americans-brace-for-skyrocketing-health-care-premiums\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/breaking-mike-johnson-cowers-from-debate-with-hakeem-jeffries-as-millions-of-americans-brace-for-skyrocketing-health-care-premiums\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Black-Logo-White-Fill-For-Email.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Black-Logo-White-Fill-For-Email.png","width":1101,"height":483},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/breaking-mike-johnson-cowers-from-debate-with-hakeem-jeffries-as-millions-of-americans-brace-for-skyrocketing-health-care-premiums\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"BREAKING: Mike Johnson Cowers from Debate with Hakeem Jeffries As Millions of Americans Brace for Skyrocketing Health Care Premiums"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/#website","url":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/","name":"Democrats","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/#\/schema\/person\/a4b0f14063c9a4041c6aca7889e98842","name":"Tristin Byrd","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/98255192fca3fed639d1477004e2837682d86427b0f3a51fbf262516e81a7d88?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/98255192fca3fed639d1477004e2837682d86427b0f3a51fbf262516e81a7d88?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Tristin Byrd"},"url":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/author\/byrdt\/"}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1056558","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/302"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1056558"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1056558\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1056559,"href":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1056558\/revisions\/1056559"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1056558"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1056558"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1056558"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}