House Democrats cave, vote for GOP bill to end record-breaking shutdown



House Republicans passed a government funding bill late Wednesday night, bringing Democrats' record-breaking shutdown closer to a welcome end.

The continuing resolution passed in a 222-209 vote, with 216 Republicans voting in favor and 209 Democrats voting against the funding bill. Two Republicans, Reps. Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Greg Steube of Florida, voted against the bill.

'Democrats gained nothing from their shutdown while hardworking families paid the price.'

Several Democrats also crossed the aisle, with a handful voting in favor of reopening the government. Democrat Rep. Jared Golden of Maine, who is retiring at the end of this term, bucked his party, alongside Reps. Adam Gray of California, Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington, Don Davis of North Carolina, Henry Cuellar of Texas, and Tom Suozzi of New York.

The resolution is now headed to President Donald Trump's desk, where he is expected to sign the bill into law Wednesday night and reopen the government.

RELATED: 'Pathetic' Senate Democrats cave, advancing key shutdown vote and prompting intraparty uproar: 'It’s a surrender'

Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images

The House vote took place just days after eight Democrat senators caved over the weekend and voted alongside Republicans to pass the funding bill in the Senate Monday night. These Democrats include Sens. Dick Durbin of Illinois, Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire, Tim Kaine of Virginia, Jacky Rosen of Nevada, Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, Angus King (I) of Maine, and Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada.

Although some lawmakers crossed the aisle to reopen the government, Democrats ultimately failed to secure commitments from Republicans to negotiate health care policy.

"For over six weeks, Democrats held our country hostage over demands for health care for illegal aliens and to prove to their base they could 'stand up' to President Trump," Republican Study Committee Chairman August Pfluger (Texas) told Blaze News.

"Let me be clear: Democrats gained nothing from their shutdown while hardworking families paid the price," Pfluger added. "Now, it is time to get back to governing and delivering on the mandate we were given by the American people last November."

RELATED: Senate Republicans pass key deal with Democrat defectors as end to record-long shutdown draws near

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The reason Democrats shut down the government in the first place was to force the GOP to extend Affordable Care Act subsidies that are set to expire at the end of the year.

Democrats fell short, securing only a commitment from Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) to hold a vote on extending the subsidies. Notably, this offer was available to Democrats on day one of the government shutdown.

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Senate Republicans pass key deal with Democrat defectors as end to record-long shutdown draws near



The Senate Republicans officially passed their funding bill to reopen the government Monday night, with the help of Democrat defectors. The legislation is now in the House, where members are expected to vote to finally reopen the government sometime Wednesday.

Over 40 days into the record-long government shutdown, eight Senate Democrats voted to pass the same clean continuing resolution that has been on the table since day one. The funding bill was passed in a 60-40 vote, with Democratic Sens. Dick Durbin of Illinois, Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire, Tim Kaine of Virginia, Jacky Rosen of Nevada, Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, Angus King (I) of Maine, and Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada voting with 52 Republicans to reopen the government.

House Democrats are already whipping members to vote against reopening the government.

With just enough Democrats defecting to pass the GOP resolution, many of their fellow Democrats expressed disapproval for the "pathetic" deal they negotiated.

The main reason Democrats shut down the government in the first place was to force Republicans' hand on extending Affordable Care Act subsidies that are expiring at the end of the year. One record-breaking shutdown later, all Democrats have to show for it is a pinky promise from Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) that there will be a floor vote on the subsidies, which was offered to Democrats on day one of the shutdown.

RELATED: 'Pathetic' Senate Democrats cave, advancing key shutdown vote and prompting intraparty uproar: 'It’s a surrender'

Photo by Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images

Republicans offered Democrats one minor concession Sunday night ahead of the filibuster vote: to reverse some firings made via reduction-in-force notices. Republicans agreed to reverse all RIFs issued during the shutdown and to refrain from issuing any more until the continuing resolution expires on January 30.

In total, this deal affects only about 4,200 employees of the roughly 150,000 federal workers who have been laid off since President Donald Trump began his second term in January.

RELATED: Democrat senator makes stunning admission about Obamacare failures

Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images

The bill is now headed over to the House, where votes are expected to resume Wednesday afternoon after the House has been out of session for over 50 days. During a Monday press conference, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) publicly urged all members to return to Washington, D.C., as soon as possible to begin voting.

House Democrats are already whipping members to vote against reopening the government, arguing that the continuing resolution "fails to address" their health care concerns. Despite their ongoing opposition, the funding bill needs only a simple majority and is expected to pass the House.

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After 14 failed votes on a spending bill to reopen the government, five additional Democratic senators finally broke with their party for a variety of reasons on Sunday night advancing legislation to end the 41-day standoff. The newly dissenting Democrats — Sens. Tim Kaine of Virginia, Dick Durbin of Illinois, Jacky Rosen of Nevada, and […]

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'Pathetic' Senate Democrats cave, advancing key shutdown vote and prompting intraparty uproar: 'It’s a surrender'



Over a month into the record-breaking shutdown, enough Senate Democrats finally caved to advance a key vote, sparking outrage within the party.

Eight Senate Democrats broke from their party late Sunday night to break the filibuster in a 60-40 vote, advancing key legislation and putting the government back on track to reopen after a record 41-day stalemate. The Senate is expected to formally pass the legislation Monday, when the continuing resolution will be punted back to the House.

'America deserves better.'

Democratic Sens. Dick Durbin of Illinois, Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire, Tim Kaine of Virginia, Jacky Rosen of Nevada, and Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire joined Sens. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, Angus King (I) of Maine, and Catherine Cortez Masto, who have consistently voted to reopen the government for the last six weeks. Notably, only Shaheen and Durbin are up for re-election in 2026, and both are retiring.

Although these other rogue Democrats are electorally safe for the next several years, many of their colleagues have ridiculed them for bucking the party and cutting a deal with Republicans.

RELATED: Democrat senator makes stunning admission about Obamacare failures

Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

After 15 failed votes to reopen the government, Democrats folded and finally came to the negotiating table. Party negotiators walked away with a continuing resolution to fund the government through January 30 featuring a reversal on reduction-in-force notices issued after October 1 and also barring future RIFs from being issued through the duration of the CR.

While Republicans made concessions on RIFs, Democrats ultimately were unable to push through any meaningful policy goals and fell short on their call to extend Obamacare subsidies. In response, high-profile Democrats tore into their Senate colleagues for caving, calling it a "surrender."

"Pathetic," California Gov. Gavin Newsom's press office said in a post on X. "This isn’t a deal. It’s a surrender. Don’t bend the knee!"

"America deserves better," Newsom added in another post on X.

RELATED: Senate Republicans betray Trump, help Democrats try to block tariffs

Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

It's not just rumored presidential hopefuls who took a stand against their Democrat Senate allies. Many of the eight defectors' colleagues came out against their vote, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.).

"There's no way to sugarcoat what happened tonight," Democrat Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut said in a post on X. "And my fear is that Trump gets stronger, not weaker, because of this acquiescence. I'm angry — like you. But I choose to keep fighting."

"To my mind, this was a very, very bad vote," independent Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont said in a post on X.

"Just on Tuesday, we had an election, all over this country. And what the election showed is that the American people want us to stand up to Trumpism. ... That is what the American people wanted. But tonight, that is not what happened."

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Democrats brush off pressure from federal workers’ union to end government shutdown



Senate Democrats have brushed off pressure from the nation’s largest union of federal workers after the organization put pressure on lawmakers to end the ongoing government shutdown.

'It’s time for our leaders to start focusing on how to solve problems for the American people, rather than on who is going to get the blame for a shutdown that Americans dislike.'

As the shutdown enters its fifth week, the American Federation of Government Employees, which represents more than 800,000 workers, called on both parties to abandon “partisan spin” and instead take action to ensure federal employees do not miss another paycheck.

“Both political parties have made their point, and still there is no clear end in sight,” Everett Kelley, president of the AFGE, stated. “It’s time to pass a clean continuing resolution and end this shutdown today. No half measures, and no gamesmanship.”

Republicans previously proposed a clean continuing resolution to reopen the government until November 21, but Democrats repeatedly blocked it.

“When the folks who serve this country are standing in line for food banks after missing a second paycheck because of this shutdown, they aren’t looking for partisan spin,” Kelley continued. “They’re looking for the wages they earned. The fact that they’re being cheated out of it is a national disgrace.”

“It’s time for our leaders to start focusing on how to solve problems for the American people, rather than on who is going to get the blame for a shutdown that Americans dislike,” he added.

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Photo by Moriah Ratner for The Washington Post via Getty Images

Yet CNN reported that Democratic lawmakers “appeared to be unmoved” by the AFGE’s demands, despite more than one million federal workers going unpaid.

Senate Minority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) stated that the AFGE’s comments had “a lot of impact,” noting that the union has “been our friends and we’ve worked with them over the years.” However, he told CNN, “I’m not seeing any change in position at this time.”

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Sen. Richard Durbin. Photo by Tierney L. Cross/Getty Images

Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) said, “I work very closely with [the AFGE]. That matters to me. But the issue that I’ve always been focused on, that I’ve shared with y’all is, is a deal, a deal? And the AFGE would not want us to cut a deal and then have Trump fire a bunch of people next week. If we cut a deal and then he did that, they would come to us and say, ‘What the hell were you guys thinking?’”

The AFGE filed a lawsuit in September against the Trump administration to block any efforts to fire federal workers furloughed amid the shutdown.

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Vance points to the leaked texts Americans really should care about: 'I refuse to join the pearl clutching'



Vice President JD Vance emphasized the Democrats' hypocrisy in feigning outrage over leaked group-chat texts while failing to condemn their own candidate who said far worse.

On Tuesday, Politico published a series of private messages between young Republican operatives that contained distasteful language and jokes. Although many Republican officials have condemned the profanities used in the leaked messages, Vance pointed out that they've buried the lede.

'I refuse to join the pearl clutching when powerful people call for political violence.'

Jay Jones, a Democrat running for attorney general in Virginia, remains embroiled in his own scandal after leaked texts showed he fantasized about giving his Republican adversary "two bullets to the head."

"Only when people feel pain personally do they move on policy," Jones said in another text after fantasizing about the deaths of the Republican's children.

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Photo by ADAM GRAY/AFP via Getty Images

"This is far worse than anything said in a college group chat, and the guy who said it could become the AG of Virginia," Vance said of Jones' texts. "I refuse to join the pearl clutching when powerful people call for political violence."

Several prominent Democrats jumped at the opportunity to condemn the leaked texts exchanged by young Republicans without condemning the violent rhetoric espoused by their own candidate.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) called the college students' texts "sickening" and "vile," saying, "This is the kind of garbage that the worst kind of people say when they think nobody is watching." At the same time, Schumer has not made a single comment about Jones, who, unlike the young GOP activists, is running for public office.

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Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia took it even farther. Even after Jones' texts were leaked, Kaine said he's "still supporting" the candidate.

"He has apologized," Kaine said. "I wish other people in public life would sincerely apologize for stuff. ... I still am a supporter."

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