Hakeem Jeffries, Mike Lawler erupt into shouting match over government shutdown

David Matthews, New York Daily News on Oct 8, 2025

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

New York Congressmen Hakeem Jeffries and Mike Lawler got into a shouting match Wednesday during a testy exchange over the ongoing government shutdown.

Lawler, a Republican, confronted the House minority leader after a news conference about Affordable Care Act subsidies, a sticking point in negotiations between the two sides.

Lawler asked Jeffries why he wouldn’t sign onto a bill that extended the subsidies for one year.

“We’ve got a one-year extension, why don’t you sign on right now?” Lawler asked.

“Did you get permission from your boss? Did your boss Donald Trump give you permission?” Jeffries responded.

“He’s not my boss,” Lawler replied.

“You’re making a show of this to make yourself relevant,” Jeffries said. “You’re an embarrassment.”

“The only embarrassment here is you,” Lawler snapped back. “My constituents are suffering as a result of your ridiculous ploy.”

The two then argued over the merits of Trump’s controversial “One Big Beautiful Bill.”

“I voted for a tax cut bill that gave the largest tax cut to Americans in history — including, by the way, the average New Yorker getting a $4,000 tax cut. Are you against that?” Lawler asked.

“You’re embarrassing yourself,” Jeffries said again. “The largest cut to Medicaid in American history — you voted for that.”

Jeffries then pointed at Lawler’s chest and accused him of talking over him.

“Why don’t you just keep your mouth shut?” he said.

“Oh, is that the way to talk?” Lawler replied.

Earlier in the day, Arizona Democratic senators Ruben Gallego and Mark Kelly confronted Speaker of the House Mike Johnson about his delay in swearing in Rep.-elect Adelita Grijalva, another Democrat.

Johnson has been accused of trying to prevent a vote to release the Epstein Files.

“You just don’t want her to be on the Epstein discharge petition,” Gallego told Johnson, who volleyed that the claim is “totally absurd” and said, “You guys are experts at red herrings and distractions.”