U.S. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) speaks to members of the media alongside fellow Republicans during a press conference following Republicans weekly policy lunch on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., September 3, 2025. As congressional Democrats push to tie extending Affordable Care Act insurance subsidies to the government funding fight, Republican leaders say they're willing to debate the issue — but not until after a shutdown is averted. His comments were echoed by Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., who called the ACA, also known as Obamacare, a program "in desperate need of reform." Their comments threw cold water on Democrats' main sticking point just days before the government is poised to shut down. The scheduled meeting comes after Trump last week abruptly cancelled a meeting with Democratic leadership, saying that no meeting "could possibly be productive."