Senators are growing increasingly concerned that the mounting flight delays and air traffic controller absences could balloon to the level experienced during the 2019 government shutdown, with some believing it could again be key to breaking the stalemate.

Air traffic control staffing issues caused significant delays Monday and Tuesday as the shutdown extended into a second week, with roughly 10,000 flights being affected. Those troubles weren’t as pronounced Wednesday, tho...

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Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) said the government shutdown has benefited Democrats so far, while congressional Republicans have "skedaddled" as the government stays closed.

Speaking with "Morning Joe" co-host Jonathan Lemire on MSNBC, Whitehouse was asked about his faith in Democratic leadership and the pay risks to federal workers as the shutdown entered its eighth day.

"You know, I think [for] Democrats, it's so far, so good," Whitehouse told Lemire.

"...

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Senate Democrats on Wednesday blocked a bill to end the government shutdown for a sixth time, as the funding lapse enters its second week with little headway made toward a resolution.

Senators voted 54-45 on the GOP’s "clean" stopgap spending package that would fund the government through late November. It needed 60 votes to advance.

Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), Angus King (I-Maine) and John Fetterman (D-Pa.) voted with Republicans, but for a fifth time no ...

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Congress on Wednesday enters the eighth day of the federal shutdown with neither party giving an inch and the path to a resolution nowhere in sight. 

But something will have to give if lawmakers hope to reopen the government in any timely fashion, and that movement will likely be the result of external forces exerting pressure on one party — or both of them — to break the deadlock.

That's been the case in the protracted shutdowns of years past, when a number ...

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Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), while maintaining past criticisms voiced about President Trump, has praised the commander in chief's political prowess.

"It is clear that this shutdown has got to end as soon as possible," Sanders said on CNN's "The Source with Kaitlan Collins" on Monday. "But what‘s also clear is that Trump now understands that he has to finally deal with the health care crisis that his legislation, the big beautiful bill, has caused."

"Trump may be c...

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Comedian Jon Stewart ripped Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) on Monday over a flat joke.

Stewart played a clip of Schumer’s remarks during "The Daily Show," in which the lawmaker said, “Democrats are adamant that we must protect the health care of the American people.”

The comedian chimed in, “If you had stopped there, that would be great. But you’re going to keep talking, aren’t you?”

The recording of Schumer continued with footage of him n...

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The government shutdown is turning into “Groundhog Day” for senators as they grow increasingly frustrated with the lack of movement toward a deal and repeated failed votes.

The Senate on Monday voted on the GOP’s “clean” stopgap funding bill and on a Democratic alternative, with both again failing to advance. Absent a substantial change in posture on either side, the upper chamber is expected to vote on the same continuing resolutions (CR) on Tuesday and Thursday.

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