‘We all are going to die’: Republican senator’s Medicaid comments compared to infamous meme

Joni Ernst, the Republican senator for Iowa, is facing widespread condemnation on social media after she responded to concerns about Donald Trump’s cuts to Medicaid at a town hall by saying “we all are going to die”.

The US president’s One Big Beautiful Bill – which has been criticised by some Republican senators after it passed the House of Representatives – includes $1.5 trillion worth of cuts to Medicaid, food stamps and other programs designed to support Americans on lower incomes.

During the town hall on Friday (May 30), Ernst told attendees: “It’s corrections of overpayments and people that have not been eligible for these programs, by law, as it is currently written. So when you’re arguing … about illegals that are receiving Medicaid benefits – 1.4 million – they’re not eligible, so they will be coming off.”

When one person shouted out that “people are going to die”, Ernst replied: “Well, we all are going to die.”

As the crowd responded with shocked groans and shouting, the senator added: “For heaven’s sakes.”

And the “cold-hearted” response from Ernst has prompted many Twitter/X users to make one comparison in particular:

Thus, the memes depicting Ernst as Lord Farquaad - saying the Shrek villain's infamous line from the iconic 2001 film, “some of you may die, but that’s a sacrifice I’m willing to make”, - soon followed:

Elsewhere, one social media user branded the remarks as “one of the worst politician quotes I’ve ever seen”:

“Good luck running on that message next year,” commented another, in reference to next year’s Senate election in the state:

Fellow politicians also spoke out against Ernst’s comments, with Minnesota senator Tina Smith writing: “I thought my job was as Senator was to try to keep my constituents alive”:

indy100 has approached Ernst's office for comment.

Why not read…

• Republican's attack on 'big, beautiful bill' stuns Trump critics
• Donald Trump blasted for ‘disgusting’ new remarks on Joe Biden’s prostate cancer diagnosis

Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter

How to join the indy100's free WhatsApp channel

Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.