Senate Democrats Block GOP Plan To End Shutdown for 10th Time
For the tenth time since the federal government shut down nearly two weeks ago, Senate Democrats on Thursday blocked the clean, short-term funding bill passed by the Republican-led House — ensuring the shutdown will drag on into next week.
Despite growing economic fallout and pressure from federal employees, Democrats once again refused to advance the measure, which would have reopened the government through November 21.
After just three days in session this week, lawmakers are now heading home for another extended weekend, leaving hundreds of thousands of furloughed federal workers and military personnel without pay.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R–S.D.), who has led the GOP’s push to end the impasse, vowed to keep bringing the House-passed continuing resolution (CR) up for votes until Democrats relent.
“We’re willing to have conversations about all the other issues that they want to talk about,” Thune said. “But that can’t happen while they are holding the federal government and all these federal employees and our troops and our air traffic controllers and our TSA agents and our Border Patrol officials hostage. Open up the government.”
Thune criticized Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D–N.Y.) for prioritizing politics over governing, saying the Democratic blockade is hurting real Americans.
“Every day that this goes on, the problems are compounded for federal workers and for ordinary Americans,” Thune continued. “Chuck Schumer may think that every day gets better for them politically, but I can tell you that is not the experience of the American people.”
Schumer, meanwhile, dodged questions about compromise and refused to negotiate publicly, instead demanding that President Donald Trump get personally involved in the talks over the expiration of Obamacare subsidies — an issue unrelated to reopening the government.
“The bottom line is [Republicans] won’t even negotiate with us,” Schumer said. “But of course, I’m not going to negotiate in public. We need to address the crisis that has afflicted the American people.”
Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R–Okla.) said the stalemate reflects Democrats’ unwillingness to prioritize Americans over politics. He admitted there was little progress on finding middle ground over healthcare subsidies and warned that if the issue drags on past the holidays, it will become purely political.
“I don’t think there’s a way to do that,” Mullin said. “And I think if you don’t have it done by Christmas, it becomes a political issue.”
As the shutdown hits Day 16, Senate Republicans are moving to revive the appropriations process in the hopes of funding critical government functions piecemeal. Thune scheduled a procedural vote on the defense appropriations bill, which would ensure pay for U.S. troops and military families.
Yet Democrats remain noncommittal — even after months of insisting on a “bipartisan” funding process. Many privately told reporters after a closed-door meeting that they were uncertain about what Republicans planned to present and considered the vote “irrelevant.”
In a notable break with their party, Senators John Fetterman (D–Pa.), Catherine Cortez Masto (D–Nev.), and Angus King (I–Maine) again voted with Republicans, supporting the effort to pass the House-approved CR.
Fetterman, who has increasingly distanced himself from the Democratic establishment, emphasized the importance of reopening the government before debating unrelated political issues.
“Any external matters unrelated to the government’s reopening can be addressed after restoring operations in Washington,” Fetterman said.
With the shutdown entering its third week, President Trump has called for Democrats to “stop the games” and pass the clean bill to reopen government. But Schumer and his caucus appear determined to prolong the crisis in pursuit of leverage — even as everyday Americans bear the cost.