Senators appeared no closer on Friday to a resolution that could end the longest government shutdown in history, as lawmakers were prepared to remain in Washington for a rare weekend session.
Tensions flared between the parties as the otherwise mild-mannered Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) traded barbs with Democrats. Republicans categorized a counteroffer from Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) to address expiring Obamacare subsidies as dead on arrival and an unserious attempt to end the shutdown stalemate.
Schumer’s latest proposal was to pair a one-year extension of the enhanced benefits with stopgap funding to end the shutdown and a trio of bipartisan appropriations bills that would fund portions of the government for a full year. He also proposed the creation of a bipartisan committee to explore long-term fixes to healthcare costs.
“Democrats are offering a very simple compromise,” Schumer said. “Since what we are proposing is only a simple extension of current law, the Senate could do this within a few hours.”
Republicans stuck by their insistence that Democrats must first help clear a 60-vote filibuster and reopen the government before Obamacare negotiations can start. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) has previously criticized a one-year extension as an insufficient nonstarter.
“It’s good that [Democrats] are prepared to talk, but we’ve got a long ways to go,” Sen. Mike Rounds (R-SD) said.
There was evidence elsewhere that the stalemate was likely to persist.
Thune reversed course from initial plans to hold another vote on a House-passed “clean” stopgap funding measure that’s failed 14 previous times, after Democrats were prepared to block it with a filibuster for the 15th time with a sense of renewed leverage following election victories earlier this week. Instead, the upper chamber planned to vote later Friday on a stand-alone measure to continue paying federal workers, including those furloughed, and military troops during shutdowns.
“The pep rally they had at lunch yesterday, evidently, changed some minds,” Thune said. “I thought we were on track. They were trending in that direction. And then yesterday, everything kind of — the wheels came off.”
At one point on Friday, a tense exchange ensued on the Senate floor between Thune and Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI) after Peters blocked an attempt by Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) to pass legislation via unanimous consent to pay federal workers and the military. Peters said it afforded “too much discretion” to President Donald Trump and “too much wiggle room for the administration to choose which federal employees are paid and when.”
“It’s about leverage, isn’t it?” Thune said to Peters. “Isn’t that what y’all have been saying? It’s about leverage? This isn’t leverage. This is the lives of the American people.”
The American Federation of Government Employees, the union that represents federal workers, sided with Republicans and urged senators in a letter to pass Johnson’s shutdown pay legislation.
The Senate was expected to hold a roll call vote to pass the measure on Friday afternoon, which will require 60 votes. It was unclear whether Democrats would provide the necessary support to pass.
GOP TO HOLD RARE WEEKEND SENATE SESSION AS DEMOCRATS SPLIT ON SHUTDOWN DEAL
The Senate planned to remain in town over the weekend to allow rank-and-file members to continue bipartisan backchannels in search of an off-ramp from the shutdown. Trump also urged senators to stay in town until a deal was reached.
“The United States Senate should not leave town until they have a Deal to end the Democrat Shutdown,” Trump posted to Truth Social. “If they can’t reach a Deal, the Republicans should terminate the Filibuster, IMMEDIATELY, and take care of our Great American Workers!”