There was a rare, hilarious moment on CNN when anchor John Berman confronted Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) about the shutdown of the government and asked him about the "Schumer Shutdown."
Clearly, Schumer didn't expect that from CNN, given his response.
It happened on Wednesday after the Democrats voted to shut down the government in an effort to fund healthcare for illegal aliens. The CNN anchor asked Schumer about what Republicans were calling the closure, and the senator just sat there and said he couldn't hear him.
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CNN: Every Republican who's gone on TV has called this the Schumer Shutdown. What do you say about that name?
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) October 1, 2025
SCHUMER: "...... I can't hear."
CNN: "Maybe the government shutdown included audio on Capitol Hill." pic.twitter.com/aNAdoAOD4q
"Every Republican who's gone on TV the last 12 hours or so has called this the Schumer Shutdown. What do you say about that name?" Berman said.
The camera then went to a live shot of Schumer on Capitol Hill, who sat there on camera saying nothing.
The anchor asked, "Senator, can you hear me?"
Before the Democrat senator said... "I can't hear."
The CNN host asked once more, "Senator Schumer, can you hear me?" But the minority leader just sat there.
"I don't think Senator Schumer can hear me right now. Maybe the government shutdown included audio on Capitol Hill," the anchor replied, hilariously.
Later in the interview, Schumer was asked about past comments he's made about shutting down the government in 2013, 2019, and in March 2025.
Those comments included calling it "a politics of idiocy, of confrontation of paralysis," "self-defeating," and "holding American workers hostage."
"That was you three times in the past… what's the difference?" the anchor said, before Schumer interjected, claiming that it's because that was before they had reportedly done "these horrible things to healthcare," without explaining further.
While Schumer might claim Republicans turned off the funding for healthcare to illegals after he made those comments in March, it's just not true after Vice President JD Vance laid out the timeline of when that funding to illegals was cut, and it was in January when Trump took office, as my RedState colleague Ward Clark reported.
.@VP nukes the Democrat lie that they aren't trying to give free health care to illegals:
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) October 1, 2025
"It's not something that we made up. It's not a talking point. It is in the text of the bill that they initially gave to us to reopen the government." pic.twitter.com/regw9fGH1i
SEE: New: Vice President Vance Roasts Dems Over Government Shutdown
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VP Vance said:
This is a Democrat talking point. They say, "We're not actually trying to give health care benefits to illegal aliens," and here's why it's not true. There are two Biden-era programs that explicitly gave the taxpayer health care money to illegal aliens that we turned off when President Trump took over in January. Program number one is there's a lot of emergency healthcare at hospitals that are provided to illegal aliens that was funded by the federal government. We turned off that funding, and because of course we want American citizens to benefit from those hospital services, not to be taxed, and then to have those hospital services go to illegal aliens. The second of which is, the Biden administration gave mass parole to millions upon millions of illegal aliens, and then they simultaneously made those parolees eligible for healthcare benefits covered by taxpayers. In the One Big Beautiful Bill President Trump and Congressional Republicans turned off that money for healthcare funding for illegal aliens, the Democrats want to turn it back on.
Schumer was also asked about the shutdown by the host of "Morning Joe," and a screenshot captured the Democrat giving a thumbs up.
The image was shared by White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt.
Democrat Shutdown. pic.twitter.com/pBOLwOcqPg
— Karoline Leavitt (@PressSec) October 1, 2025
Sure seems like Schumer's not only owning it, but celebrating it.
Editor’s Note: The Schumer Shutdown is here. Rather than put the American people first, Chuck Schumer and the radical Democrats forced a government shutdown for healthcare for illegals. They own this.
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