Sen.-elect Scott Colom (D-MS) warned that Republicans will face even more losses in 2028 if they don’t get on board to address healthcare cuts and affordability concerns.
“Because here is the reality: If they don’t make sure Americans have affordable and accessible healthcare, if they don’t save these rural hospitals, they think 2026 was bad? 2028 is going to be a wipeout,” Colom said Sunday on CNN.
Republicans suffered major losses in the midterm elections, with Democrats winning control of both the House and the Senate. Colom won the Senate seat in Mississippi in an historic upset over incumbent Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS).
Colom said Democrats now have the ability to put pressure on President Donald Trump and Republicans even before the new members of Congress are sworn in in January.
“I think we have to have a strategy that puts pressure on Republicans and President Trump,” Colom said. “For me, I know there’s a lot of Republicans that lost health insurance in Mississippi because the federal support went away.”
As people in Mississippi risk losing health insurance because of Medicaid cuts, Colom said it would affect rural hospitals. He added that he was optimistic that Sens. Josh Hawley (R-MO) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) would be willing to work with Democrats to prevent their constituents from losing healthcare.
PETE BUTTIGIEG REMINDS DEMOCRATS HE CAMPAIGNED ON MEDICARE FOR ALL WHO WANT IT SIX YEARS AGO
During an interview Sunday with NBC’s Kristen Welker, Colom said Congress also needed to remove tariffs, stop the war in Iran, and increase minimum wage to address affordability concerns.
“We gotta raise the minimum wage,” Colom said. “It’s been much too long. I mean, I think LeBron James was with the Cavaliers the first time, the last time we raised the minimum wage. He’s been with four different teams since then.”