How unpopular is Sen. Jeanne Shaheen’s decision to abandon Democrats’ filibuster of the GOP’s continuing resolution and cut a deal with Republicans?
Even her own daughter hates it.
“Improving health care has been the cause of my life. It’s why I am running for Congress. So I cannot support this deal when Speaker Johnson refuses to even allow a vote to extend health care tax credits,” Stefany Shaheen said in a statement. “We need to both end this shutdown and extend the ACA tax credits. Otherwise, no deal.”
The younger Shaheen is just one of many New Hampshire Democrats who have denounced the agreement. Not a single Granite State Democrat seeking federal office in 2026 — including U.S. Reps. Maggie Goodlander and Chris Pappas — supports Jeanne Shaheen’s actions.
Stefany’s mom emerged Sunday night as the public face of the group of eight Democrats who voted with Republicans to end the filibuster and allow the process of reopening the government to move forward. Shaheen’s colleague, Sen. Maggie Hassan, also broke ranks and voted with the GOP.
The agreement that passed a preliminary vote Sunday night reopens the government through Jan. 30. It also includes three full-year appropriations bills — for military construction and veterans affairs, the legislative branch, and the Department of Agriculture — extending those through Sept. 30, 2026.
Thousands of furloughed federal workers would get their jobs back under the agreement, and the White House Office of Management and Budget has agreed not to make any additional layoffs until Jan. 30, 2026. Supporters of the agreement argue it is a win for Democrats.
“This legislation will protect federal workers from baseless firings, reinstate those who have been wrongfully terminated during the shutdown, and ensure federal workers receive back pay, as required by a law I got passed in 2019. That’s a critical step that will help federal employees and all Americans who rely on government services,” said Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.).
Republicans point out that the furloughs wouldn’t have happened if Democrats hadn’t shut down the government in the first place.
But it’s Democrats who are the most critical of the Shaheen-backed deal.
The Daily Beast headline reads: “Dem Surrender Mastermind Is Denounced by Her Own Daughter.”
“This ‘deal’ is a surrender that all congressional Democrats should reject out of hand,” said Indivisible co-founder Ezra Levin. “We cannot afford a divided and weak opposition party.”
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) called the deal “a mistake.”
“While Trump and Republicans inflict pain on people, Democrats’ most important job is to fight back,” Warren posted on social media.
And next door in Vermont, Rep. Becca Balint (D-Vt.) told Axios, “It’s complete BS. A concept of a possible vote. People need healthcare, damn it. Not some lame promise about a mythical future vote.”
Hassan and Shaheen don’t have any support among Democrats at home, either.
Goodlander condemned the deal for relying on hope that Republicans would allow a vote. “Hope is not a strategy or an acceptable plan. That’s why I cannot accept this proposal,” Goodlander said.
Pappas, who hopes to replace Shaheen in the U.S. Senate next year, is also a no.
“I won’t support a deal that allows health care costs to skyrocket for families and small businesses. Speaker Johnson — who has kept the House closed for a month and a half — has proven he doesn’t care about working to lower costs.”
The other two Democrats in the U.S. Senate primary were more direct. Karishma Manzur called the Hassan–Shaheen deal a “strategic blunder” that helped Republicans.
“Americans deserve leaders who fight for what’s right, not those who buckle under pressure. There’s no room for surrender when lives are at stake.”
State Rep. Jared Sullivan (D-Bethlehem) said the deal was “completely unacceptable.”
“When Republicans hold the country hostage, Democrats cave. If I were your senator, I wouldn’t have voted to reopen the government without real healthcare guarantees,” Sullivan said.
There is some support for the Hassan and Shaheen deal in New Hampshire — from Republicans.
“While our senators worked across the aisle to reopen the government, Chris Pappas chose Chuck Schumer and chose partisanship over problem-solving. New Hampshire deserves better,” said GOP U.S. Senate candidate John E. Sununu.
At the Josiah Bartlett Center dinner on Monday night, Sununu told NHJournal that Democrats were right to make the deal but wrong to shut down the government in the first place. The criticism, he said, was “an indication of how far left and extreme parts of the Democratic Party have become.”
And Pappas’ rejection of the deal shows he is “listening to and following the extreme of the party, not standing up for New Hampshire. He’s not doing what people in New Hampshire want to see: get the government operating, do the work (of the Senate), do the job, and don’t pander to the far left.”
State GOP chair Jim MacEachern accused the younger Shaheen of political opportunism.
“Stefany will do anything to get ahead, even if it means abandoning her own mother. If she’ll throw her mother under the bus, she’ll do the same to Granite Staters.”
What does does mean for the two Shaheens?
“Clearly, we had different approaches here,” Stefany told The New York Times on Monday morning. “I can’t speak for her. I think she did what she believes is right.”
“My daughter is very independent,” was Jeanne Shaheen’s response. “That’s why she’s going to be such a great congresswoman.”
