Reject

Senate Democrats reject GOP-led funding stopgap for 11th time

There were no immediate signs of an offramp as the shutdown enters a fourth week.

Jordain Carney

Senate Democrats on Monday rejected a GOP-led stopgap funding bill for the 11th time as the shutdown heads into its fourth week.

Senators voted 50-43 on the House-passed bill, which would fund the government through Nov. 21. Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada and Independent Sen. Angus King of Maine were the only senators who broke rank to vote to advance the bill. Sen. John Fetterman (D-Penn.) did not vote.

GOP leadership and the White House signaled hope Monday that the shutdown could soon come to an end after this weekend’s “No Kings” rallies. But Democrats have repeatedly denied that their shutdown posture was related to the protests, and there are no immediate signs that lawmakers are nearing an offramp.

Instead, Senate Majority Leader John Thune and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer traded barbs ahead of the Monday evening floor vote.

“Democrats have made it very clear that they don’t care about the costs of the shutdown to anyone. Democrats used to care, of course or so they claimed. … Now that it serves their purposes to keep the government closed, they’re all for shutdowns,” Thune said on Monday.

Schumer fired back that “Republicans seem happy not to work, happy not to negotiate, happy to let health care premiums spike for over 20 million working and middle-class Americans.”

A bipartisan group of senators have been having discussions about how to proceed once the government reopens, including floating a potential vote on extending Affordable Care Act subsidies that will expire at the end of the year. But those talks have struggled to gain traction in an entrenched shutdown stalemate.

Republicans are trying to increase pressure on Democrats to shift their strategy. Thune brought up a Defense Department funding bill last week, which failed to advance amid Democratic opposition; he could bring it back up for a second vote in the coming days.

Republicans will also force a vote later this week on legislation that would allow some federal employees and members of the military to be paid during the shutdown. But Democrats are currently expected to block that bill, too, over concerns it would empower Trump and White House budget director Russ Vought to pay only the employees they like — and furlough everyone else.

The Monday night vote comes ahead of Senate Republicans’ scheduled Tuesday lunch at the White House, where Trump is expected to thank them for staying united during the shutdown fight and for confirming a swath of his nominees.