On Friday’s broadcast of NPR’s “Morning Edition,” Delaware Gov. Matt Meyer (D) said that “lawmakers could decide to end the shutdown and fund programs like SNAP so governors like myself don’t have this problem. But then we’re going to have another huge problem” on health care. And said, “I appreciate that Democratic legislators are fighting, and we’ve got to fight.”
Meyer said, [relevant remarks begin around 3:30] “I recognize that this stalemate in Washington is largely about health care. And, right now, lawmakers could decide to end the shutdown and fund programs like SNAP so governors like myself don’t have this problem. But then we’re going to have another huge problem that healthcare premiums will be doubling for millions of Americans. So, these are all self-inflicted crises. And, in a wealthy country like ours, we’ve got to find a better way.”
Co-host A Martínez then asked, “Just a few moments left, Governor, how do you square that with your constituents when they ask you, like, why is this happening? What do you tell them?”
Meyer answered, “Well, first of all, I tell my constituents you’re going to eat, you’re going to have food benefits that we’ve had for as long as the SNAP program has existed. So, I tell them my job and our job as state leaders is to protect you. In terms of what’s going on in Washington, listen, there’s a Republican executive. There’s a Republican president, President Trump. There’s a Republican legislature. The courts — Supreme Court is largely controlled by the Republican Party. This is the direction the country’s going in now. It’s not the direction that I want it to go in. I appreciate that Democratic legislators are fighting, and we’ve got to fight. But while we’re fighting, we’ve got to make sure that people can eat.”
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