At a fiery town hall on Monday night, Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, didn’t mince words when reacting to Republican rhetoric around Medicaid reform, agreeing with a bold accusation that GOP policies seem designed to hasten death for America’s poor.
The event, hosted live by former CNN anchor Jim Acosta, included appearances from actress Rosie O’Donnell, former Capitol police officer and CNN contributor Michael Fanone, and ex-Trump adviser Olivia Troye. Crockett, who headlined the panel, took center stage with fierce commentary and applause-inducing jabs at GOP leaders.
The discussion turned sharply political when Acosta raised a remark made by Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, during a recent town hall. Responding to a crowd warning that people could die if Medicaid eligibility was slashed, Ernst had said, “We all are going to die.”
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“I’m thinking to myself,” Acosta told the panel, “isn’t the point of healthcare to postpone that as long as possible, like, we don’t want that to happen, isn’t that the point?”
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Fanone followed up with a blunt assessment: “Republicans want poor people to die as quickly as humanly possible.”
Crockett didn’t hesitate: “I agree,” she said. “I don’t think that is a glitch, but that’s actually part of the design.”
Ernst had framed her controversial remark as a response to hecklers at her town hall, clarifying that Medicaid reforms would remove only ineligible recipients: non-citizens, duplicate enrollees, and able-bodied individuals refusing work. But the comment sparked national backlash and became a centerpiece of Acosta’s discussion.
Crockett, according to a Fox New report, seized the moment to connect Ernst’s rhetoric to broader GOP priorities:
“The idea that you’ve got someone who has the audacity to say to people that sent her into D.C. to work on their behalf that you’re going to die… I think we all know that, but the reality is that you’ve decided that you want to be a gravedigger, and I don’t think that is who they elected you to be. They elected you to actually breathe life into it.”
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A spokesperson for Ernst dismissed Crockett’s commentary as political theater.
“While Democrats fearmonger against strengthening the integrity of Medicaid, Sen. Ernst is focused on improving the lives of all Iowans… She’s working to ease the burden of both [death and taxes],” the statement read.
Crockett, considered a rising star in Democratic circles, has become a lightning rod in recent months. She’s reportedly weighing a bid to chair the powerful House Oversight Committee, a move that would position her at the front lines in confronting a potential Trump-led executive branch.
Her unapologetic tone has made headlines before. Earlier this year, she sparked outrage by saying she hoped Elon Musk would be “taken down” on her birthday, a comment she later clarified as nonviolent. She also drew criticism for mocking Texas Gov. Greg Abbott as “Governor Hot Wheels,” a remark she later walked back as a “distraction.”
In January, tensions escalated further when Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., challenged Crockett to a physical fight following a sharp exchange during a committee hearing. And in 2024, Crockett made waves for trademarking the insult “bleach blonde, bad built, butch body” after a viral clash with Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga.
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