I don't recall this being an issue, exactly. Cost less to whom is the question to be asked. It was supposed to cost less to the U.S. as a nation, not necessarily less to the federal government. I don't think it's clear that it goes either way yet, and we won't know until it's been up and running for a few years. I won't be surprised if insurance costs on the whole go up, but that's because the law leaves too much to private insurance companies. There should have been a single payer system, but Republicans and some Democrats (mainly those of a more conservative bent) fought that proposal tooth and nail.
Unclear.
Yes, correct. Nor do I have to feed and clothe my daughter. Nor do I have to pay my employees, grade my students' essays, stop and stoplights for oncoming traffic, wait in line at the cash register like everyone else, or any number of the other usual responsibilities I have as a human being in my various roles. But I had better do all of those things, or face very serious unwanted consequences on multiple levels.
Part of what is really quite exasperating about this mess is that when Democrats, and some Republicans, have mentioned this to the likes of Cruz or Boehner, it's cast as those Dems/Reps making threats. Imagine that I find someone pacing along the edge of the roof of a very tall building, and I say "if you aren't careful, you'll fall to your death." If their response is that I'm threatening this consequence, they're obviously not thinking clearly.
I don't recall a single Democrat threatening a shutdown over this.
