For all the latest developments in Congress, follow WTOP Capitol Hill correspondent Mitchell Miller at Today on the Hill.
The government shutdown is entering its third week and congressional leaders from both parties show no signs that they are any closer to resolving an impasse than when the shutdown began on Oct. 1.
Since the start of the shutdown, the U.S. Senate has conducted seven votes on Democratic and Republican short-term spending bills that would reopen the government.
And each time, the bills have failed.
The number of Democrats supporting the GOP continuing resolution hasn’t changed, with only three lawmakers siding with Republicans, leaving the measure five votes short of the 60 needed.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune had hoped that Democrats would eventually come to the Republican side, but he and House Speaker Mike Johnson have grown increasingly frustrated.
Thune has indicated he will no longer allow the Democrats to bring up their separate proposal.
“We’ve got to have a handful of Democrats in the Senate who apply common sense and agree to reopen the government,” said Johnson, who has repeatedly noted the Republicans didn’t add any amendments to the “clean CR.”
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries rejects Johnson’s charges that Democrats are holding out solely to please their political base.
He accuses the GOP of ignoring the need to address the year-end expiration of the Affordable Care Act subsidies, which could send insurance rates soaring for millions of Americans.
“Republicans control the House, the Senate and the presidency, and unfortunately, they’ve made the decision to take a my-way-or-the-highway approach,” Jeffries said.
Jeffries and Johnson spoke on “Fox News Sunday.”
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Fix coming for military pay
President Donald Trump announced over the weekend that he has directed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to find money in the Pentagon budget to make sure that military personnel get paid, when their paychecks are due on Wednesday.
There has been widespread concern in Congress about paying military personnel.
Rep. Sarah Elfreth, a Democrat who represents Maryland’s 3rd District, attempted to bring up a bill last week to pay the military.
She tried to do so on the House floor by unanimous consent, but her effort was blocked.
Rep. Mike Bost, a Republican who represents the 12th District in Illinois, was presiding over the chamber and he gaveled out the session before Elfreth was able to finish making her request.
Democrats have criticized Johnson for not bringing the House back in session during the entire duration of the shutdown.
Some Republicans have privately raised issues about that as well, concerned that they may get blamed for allowing the shutdown to drag on.
But, Johnson has defended his decision, pointing out the House “did its job” when it passed the continuing resolution last month.
How long could the shutdown last?
The shutdown is already on track to be one of the longest on record. It is now in its thirteenth day and the Senate won’t be back until Tuesday.
The shutdown is getting close to the length of one that occurred in 2013, when President Barack Obama was in office.
In that shutdown, Republicans pressed to get rid of the Affordable Care Act in a dispute that lasted 16 days, from Oct. 1 to Oct. 17. It was the third-longest shutdown since 1980.
Another shutdown in 1995-96 — between President Bill Clinton and House Speaker Newt Gingrich — lasted 21 days. That was the second longest ever.
Republicans received the brunt of the blame for that shutdown and Clinton was reelected in 1996.
The longest shutdown, which lasted 34 days, occurred during Trump’s first term in 2018-2019 as he and Republicans held out for more money for the border wall between the U.S. and Mexico.
Lawmakers and others on Capitol Hill have indicated that this shutdown could potentially last through the end of the month, since neither side shows any indication of budging.
Ultimately, many believe a compromise will likely stem from talks related to extending the Affordable Care Act subsidies.
Democratic Rep. Steny Hoyer, who represents Maryland’s 5th District, has experienced many shutdowns during his lengthy congressional career.
“I don’t want federal employees shut out for another day,” he said in an interview with WTOP in his congressional office. “But also, I don’t want democracy to be run over by a president and by a government that thinks they are all powerful.”
He believes the resolution will be linked to the ACA subsidies and the president.
“If the president says something and he means it, and he wants to get it done, he’ll get it done. Period,” Hoyer said, noting that congressional Republicans know they need to have his support for any potential compromise.
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