‘Family Feud’: Dem Senator’s Daughter Publicly Torches Her Mother’s Recent Move

Thanksgiving dinner in the Shaheen household could get tense this year.

Stefany Shaheen, a Democrat running for Congress in New Hampshire, said Monday she “cannot support” the Senate’s deal to end the record-breaking government shutdown, a deal her mother, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), happens to back.

In a post on X, the younger Shaheen said she’d only vote to end the shutdown if the plan includes an extension of Affordable Care Act subsidies. The bipartisan package — supported Sunday by her mother, eight other Democrats, and 52 Republicans — does not.

“We need to both end this shutdown and extend the ACA tax credits,” Stefany Shaheen wrote. “Otherwise, no deal. It’s essential to ensure people have access to health care and it’s past time to put paychecks back into people’s pockets and food back on families’ tables.”

Her campaign website notes that Shaheen’s oldest daughter, Elle, nearly died after being diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at age 8, an ordeal that inspired her to push for medical research and disease prevention.

Asked about the family split, a spokesperson for Sen. Shaheen pointed The Hill to her comments to reporters on Monday, in which she brushed off any hint of discord.

Senator Shaheen speaks at the Munich Security Conference in 2017

“She’s very independent,” the senator said. “She’ll be such a great congresswoman. She knows a lot about the health care system, because she’s been working in it for over 20 years.”

The Senate plan would reopen the government by funding the Department of Agriculture, military construction, veterans’ affairs, and Congress itself through September 2026. The rest of the government would be funded through Jan. 30. It would also keep more than 4,000 federal workers the Trump administration moved to lay off during the shutdown and block any new firings until Jan. 30.

The ACA subsidies expire at the end of December, meaning premiums could spike if Congress fails to act. Jeanne Shaheen told CNN’s Kate Bolduan the shutdown debate offers “an opportunity” to strike a bipartisan deal to extend the credits.

“Because of this shutdown fight, we’ve had a number of Republicans who have figured out that this is an issue for them,” she said. “This is not a red state issue or a blue state issue; this is about making sure that people can afford their health insurance.”

Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) has promised Democrats a December vote on the subsidies. But Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) isn’t giving the same assurance in the House.

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