WASHINGTON (AP) — government shutdown Now on the 36th day, we have broken the all-time record. longest ever and disrupt life millions of Americans federal program cuts, flight delay And federal employees across the country retired. without salary.
President Donald Trump refused to negotiate with Democrats seeking overdue relief; health insurance subsidies Until they agree to reopen the government. But skeptical Democrats question whether the Republican president will keep his word, especially after taking office. Limited SNAP food assistancein spite of court order This is to secure funding to prevent hunger.
In his first term in the White House, Trump History of government shutdownsis scheduled to hold a breakfast meeting with Republican senators early Wednesday morning. However, no talks with the Democratic Party are scheduled.
“The reason this is happening is because our colleagues don’t want to come to the table to discuss something as simple as health care costs. We’re shut down,” Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) said in a late-night speech.
“Stop this mess and come to the table and negotiate,” she said.
and Trump is largely a bystander.talks are intensifying among a loose coalition of centrist senators attempting to negotiate an end to the stalemate. Hopes are rising that the logjam will be broken once the election results are fully tallied in Tuesday’s off-year race, which was widely watched as a gauge of voter sentiment about Trump’s second term in the White House. Democrats won overwhelming victories in the key gubernatorial races in Virginia and New Jersey, and the mayoral race in New York, which is sure to shake up political opinion.
But Senate Democrats ended a several-hour closed session in the early afternoon with a cold look on their faces, without offering a concrete path forward.
“We are considering all options.” Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer I said later.
President Trump sets new shutdown record
President Trump’s approach to the shutdown is in sharp contrast to his first term, when the government was partially shut down for 35 days over requests for construction funds. US-Mexico border wall. At the time, he met publicly with Congressional leaders to negotiate, but failed to secure funding and relented in 2019.
This time, President Trump didn’t just refuse to talk. Congressional leaders are at odds; Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, Louisiana Republicans sent their lawmakers home after approving their own funding bill in September, refusing to negotiate further.
Meanwhile, food aid childcare funds Countless other government services have been severely disrupted, with hundreds of thousands of federal employees furloughed or expected to report to work without pay.
Transport Secretary Sean Duffy predicted that could happen. empty chaos If air traffic controllers don’t get another paycheck next week. Labor unions put pressure on lawmakers to reopen the government.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R.S.D., said this is not only the longest shutdown, but also “the most severe shutdown on record.”
Republican leaders argued that no one wins politically from confrontation and urged Democrats to accept his offer to vote on health care issues and continue negotiating a solution once government reopens.
“Shutdowns are stupid,” Thun said.
Senators explore possibility of agreement
At the heart of any endgame will be a set of agreements that will need to be supported not only by the Senate but also by the House and the White House, which is far from certain in Washington.
First, senators from both parties, particularly powerful members of the Appropriations Committee, are working to ensure that the normal government funding process in Congress gets back on track.
Several Democrats are among those working behind the scenes, including Senate Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Mike Rounds (R.S.D.), as well as Sens. Jeanne Shaheen and Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire, and Sen. Chris Coons of Delaware.
“The pace of talks is picking up,” said Sen. Gary Peters (D-Mich.), who has been participating in the talks.
Among the goals is ensuring future votes on smaller bills that already have broad bipartisan agreement to fund various aspects of government, such as agricultural programs and military construction projects on bases.
“I certainly think these three bills are poised to do a lot of good for the American people,” said Sen. Katie Britt (R-Ala.), who is also participating in the talks.
Medical costs soar for millions
Even more difficult is that a significant number of senators want some kind of resolution to the conflict over Affordable Care Act subsidies that expire at the end of the year.
As premium notices go out, millions of Americans are experiencing sticker shock from rising prices. Many people are expected to lose their livelihoods with the loss of enhanced federal aid introduced during the COVID-19 pandemic and provided in the form of tax credits. Unable to enroll in health insurance.
Republicans are reluctant to fund the health care system (also known as Obamacare) without reform, but even if a deal is reached, negotiating a compromise with Democrats is expected to take time.
Mr. Thune has promised to vote on at least the health care measure that Democrats want on a certain date as part of a deal to reopen the government. But that’s not enough for some senators, who see the health care impasse as part of President Trump’s broader concerns about the direction of the country.
The White House says its position remains unchanged, saying Democrats must vote on funding the government before talks can begin on health care. White House officials have been in close contact with Republican senators who have been meeting secretly with leading Senate Democrats, a senior White House official said. The official was granted anonymity to discuss administration strategy.
President Trump’s call to end the filibuster fails
The president is urging senators to lift the filibuster, a Senate rule that requires 60 votes to pass most legislation, as a way to reopen the government.
Republican senators denounced Trump’s call to end the filibuster in an unusual public meeting with the president. Thune and others argue that while the Senate’s rules are sometimes frustrating, they ensure that minority parties can keep the government in check, which is important as power shifts in Washington.
But with Republicans currently holding a slim 53-47 majority in the Senate, Democrats were able to block the government funding bill passed by the House with more than a dozen no votes.
President Trump said eliminating the filibuster would be one way for Republicans to bypass Democrats and end the government shutdown on their own. Republican senators are trying to avoid that outcome.
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Associated Press writers Kevin Freaking, Stephen Groves, Seungmin Kim and Matt Brown contributed to this report.
