The media channels have been busy as they cover U.S. Rep. Julie Fedorchak, U.S. Sen. Kevin Cramer, and U.S. Sen. John Hoeven scrambling to try to rewrite history as they attempt to shift blame on Democrats for the government shutdown, continuing to perpetuate the GOP lie that Democrats support a Continuing Resolution that pays healthcare for undocumented immigrants.
Fedorchak, Cramer, and Hoeven know very well, federal law prohibits undocumented immigrants from being eligible for most federal and state public benefits, including major programs like:
• Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly food stamps)
• Non-emergency Medicaid
• Medicare
• Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
• Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
• Affordable Care Act (ACA) Marketplace coverage and tax credits
• Most federal housing assistance programs
The only valid program where undocumented immigrants may be eligible is through the federal Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA) program where any person – whether a US citizen, a legal immigrant, or an undocumented immigrant – is required to receive emergency care from a hospital even if they lack the ability to pay. The total federal cost for the portion of undocumented immigrants covered under EMTALA is less than 0.4% of Medicaid’s total budget – which is considered a rounding error.
The truth of the matter is, the point of contention for Democrats with the continuing resolution is not EMTALA. The issue is Democrats are taking a firm stand against the Continuing Resolution proposed by Republicans in order to prevent American citizens from losing healthcare tax credits that make health insurance affordable. Under the Continuing Resolution proposed by Republicans, if Democrats relent to them, then 30,000 to 35,000 North Dakota citizens will lose their healthcare from the expiring federal tax credits for marketplace plans.
Meanwhile, the hill that Republicans are standing on is: “We want no food for the poor until the Democrats let us take away your healthcare.”
Let us not also forget: It was GOP Rep. Mike Johnson, La., who sent House Republicans home on a thus far 7-week paid vacation as he continues to change the explanation of why he doesn’t want to swear in Representative-elect Adelita Grijalva, Arizona, whose swearing in would force a House vote to release the files of President Donald Trump’s close friend, former neighbor, convicted sex offender, and indicted sex trafficker, Jeffrey Epstein.
And, while Fedorchak, Cramer, and Hoeven suddenly have vocal chords to try to fabricate misplaced rage, let’s not forget the many depraved, incompetent, and harmful incidents and actions of President Donald Trump where all three of them have remained completely silent or incapable of criticizing the president – here is a short list:
- Trump ginning up a crowd of thousands as he concocted and perpetuated his lie that he had actually won the 2016 election, resulting in his violent supporters the storming of the White House which lead to $30 million in damage and significant harm to law enforcement officers
- Trump sending $40 billion of US taxpayer funds to Argentina to help his friend Javier Milei, the current President of Argentina, who is facing a major corruption scandal and alleged bribes related to government contracts. Argentina in turn set up selling large quantities of their soybeans to China, a market that Trump had completely lost for US farmers due to his hostile and erratic tariffs and inability to diplomatically negotiate, and then Trump also allowing importation of Argentinian beef which is projected to cause harm to American beef producers
- Trump posting on his social media account an AI video of himself flying a fighter jet as he dumps streams of feces on US citizens
- Trump literally rolling out the red carpet and hosting Vladimir Putin in Alaska, despite Putin being the perpetrator of the unprovoked invasion of Ukraine and being wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for war crimes, which would be cause for immediate arrest
- Trump lying that the historic East Wing would not be harmed by his ballroom project, then completely demolishing the East Wing, bypassing all protocol and procedures for such a project
- In this era of many people struggling financially from Trump’s erratic and unstable economic whims and actions, Trump erecting an unnecessary $300 million vanity ballroom – a space no one asked to be built, and another opportunity for Trump to grift while also pressuring major businesses to donate to gain favor with favorable edicts from himself
- Trump revealing the opulent marble makeover of the Lincoln bathroom, again, in this era of many people struggling financially from his unstable and erratic economic whims and actions and cuts to safety social net programs
- Trump spending 70 of his first 288 days in his second presidency golfing. By the way, in his first term he spent 428 days (nearly one in three) of his 1,461 days in office golfing yet, while he was running for office, he said he would be so busy he wouldn’t have time for golf – just one of his documented 30,573 lies from his first term
- Trump refusing to institute the contingency fund for SNAP benefits while he celebrated with a lavish Halloween party in Mar-a-Lago at a cost to taxpayers of $3.4 million
- Trump accepting a $400 million Qatari jet as a gift, which will cost taxpayers an estimated $1 billion to retrofit, and which will then ultimately be transferred to Trump’s presidential library foundation
- The Young Republicans professing their love for Hitler, advocating the use of a gas chamber, and 249 other racist, ableist and homophobic slurs in 2,900 pages of chats over a 7-month period. There is clearly a welcoming atmosphere from the GOP to white supremacists, far right anti-government groups, and neo-Nazi groups who feel safe to speak freely about their racism and pro-fascist agenda. Meanwhile, Fedorchak, Cramer, and Hoeven? Not a peep of condemnation.
- Trump’s FBI director Kash Patel using a $60 million FBI jet for date nights and to shuttle his girlfriend around the country at taxpayer expense. In any other administration, such misuse of taxpayer equipment and funds would be cause for immediate termination but, under Trump, and with the continued silence of Fedorchak, Cramer, and Hoeven, there are no standards of conduct to uphold or bottom that can’t be crossed.
Let’s face it. Fedorchak, Cramer, and Hoeven have abdicated any and all of the congressional power they might have had to the president’s office, they no longer represent any degree of value to being a third branch of government, nor of any value to the United States or North Dakota’s citizens. Every decision or power they might have had has been yielded to every wit and whim of Trump, no matter how insane, reprehensible, outrageous, or harmful it is.
What can you do? Call or email North Dakota’s congressional delegation and respectfully demand they stop lying about “medicaid for illegal aliens” as they also fight against extending healthcare subsidies to make health insurance affordable for American citizens, including an estimated 35,000 North Dakota citizens.