As part of the agreement that ended the government shutdown last month, Republican leaders in the Senate promised a vote on a Democratic bill to protect health care consumers and to extend existing Affordable Care Act subsidies.

On Thursday afternoon, GOP leaders kept their promise and brought the Democratic bill to the floor for a procedural vote. It needed 60 votes to advance, but it received 51. A rival Republican bill, which included some conservative reforms but which wouldn’t have protected ACA subsidies at all, also needed 60 votes. It received 51.

So where does that leave us? An MS NOW report summarized:

The failed votes leave lawmakers with just over two weeks to address the rising premiums. Many enrollees are expected to see their premiums more than double if lawmakers don’t act, and both chambers are scheduled to recess for the holidays at the end of next week.

Some lawmakers are still clinging to the hope that Thursday’s collapse might jolt bipartisan talks back to life.

....In a normal political environment, this would ordinarily be about the time when the president would intervene, show some leadership and set a path for his or her party. The trouble is, in 2025, as his party looks to him for guidance and direction, Donald Trump is responding with shrugged shoulders.

Part of this is the result of his own illiteracy on health care policy, and part of it is the result of learned experience: The White House recently intended to unveil a plan to address the problem, but officials pulled the plug when congressional Republicans balked at the proposed solution.

With lawmakers — or, more to the point, their constituents — running out of calendar, it’s tough to be optimistic.