Washington’s stubborn budget impasse found an ignominious place in history on Wednesday when it entered its 36th day, marking the longest government shutdown since the nation’s founding.
It didn’t happen by accident.
Instead, a variety of factors conspired to cause both sides to dig in for weeks without ceding an inch — a perfect storm of political brinkmanship, clashing ideologies and deep-rooted distrust that’s left Congress stumbling to find an elusive re...
Senate
GOP divisions emerge over end-date for funding bill to end shutdown
A scrap is emerging among Republicans on Capitol Hill over how long a stopgap spending bill should last as part of a deal to end a record-setting government shutdown.
Republicans have been clamoring for Democrats to strike a deal to reopen the government for weeks, but an intraparty brouhaha has been developing in the background. There is widespread agreement that the Nov. 21 end date of the House-passed bill won’t leave lawmakers enough time to work out funding for the res...
Group of Senate Democrats eye abandoning shutdown fight — but get pushback
A group of centrist Senate Democrats are sounding out Democratic colleagues on a potential deal to reopen the federal government this week or next week, but they’re getting strong pushback that could scuttle a potential agreement, according to people familiar with the discussions.
A senator familiar with the behind-the-scenes negotiations said that centrist Democrats, including retiring Sens. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) and Gary Peters (D-Mich.), have the contours of a deal and...
Shutdown ties record as lawmakers struggle to find funding deal
The government shutdown, which stretched into its 35th day Tuesday, has tied the record for the longest in U.S. history.
The current shutdown began Oct. 1, after Congress failed to strike a deal to fund the government. Since it started, thousands of federal workers have been furloughed while others are working without pay, flights have been delayed nationwide and many Americans have been left without food assistance.
The last shutdown that lasted this long&n...
Democrats weigh shift to reopen government
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In today's issue:
• Internal Dem discussions on shutdown
• Election Day preview
• Mike Pence's The Hill interview
• Remembering Dick Cheney
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Senate spurns GOP spending bill for 14th time amid bipartisan talks to end shutdown
The Senate on Tuesday shot down a bill to reopen the federal government for the 14th time, even as the chamber shows signs of life towards a possible deal to end the shutdown.
Senators voted 54-44 on the House-passed "clean" continuing resolution, which would have funded the government through Nov. 21. It needed 60 votes to advance.
Despite the tentative moves toward a deal, the tally remained largely the same. Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), John Fet...
GOP pollster expecting government to reopen by next week
Longtime Republican pollster Frank Luntz predicted Monday that the government shutdown could soon reach its end.
While speaking on Bloomberg's "Balance of Power" with Joe Mathieu, Luntz answered whether or not the shutdown will impact Tuesday's elections in Virginia.
"In Virginia, there are so many government employees or family members of the government employees, or someone whose best friend is a government employee, and they’re fed up with this," Luntz replied....
Democrats divided over cutting deal to end shutdown
Senate Democrats are divided over whether Republicans have offered enough to reach a deal to end the government shutdown this week.
Several centrist Democrats are signaling to their Republican colleagues that an agreement could be reached in the next few days.
But other Senate Democrats warn that reopening the government without a real concession from President Trump on extending the expiring health insurance premium subsidies — or at least a stronger gesture of g...
Lawmakers hopeful Election Day will be turning point in the shutdown fight
Lawmakers in both parties are hopeful that Tuesday’s elections will be the jolt needed for either Democrats or Republicans to shift their shutdown strategy.
The elections arrive as the pain of the shutdown intensifies across the country, but lawmakers in both parties acknowledge that no deal can be finalized until the contests are no longer hanging over their heads.
Some Democrats say a wide margin of victory could push Republicans to negotiate on their health car...
Democratic senators head to Florida to highlight ObamaCare price spike
A trio of Democratic senators — Chris Murphy (Conn.), Elizabeth Warren (Mass.) and Tina Smith (Minn.) — traveled to South Florida on Monday to address rising health care costs amid the government shutdown.
In a video Murphy posted to social platform X, the Connecticut lawmaker said they traveled to the area to speak with “regular Floridians” about impending premium increases.
“I’m here because I think that nobody should go bankrupt over a bad medical diagnosis,” Wa...