After more than 40 days of a federal shutdown, lawmakers from both parties are signaling that a breakthrough may be close. A group of moderate senators — including Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.), and Angus King (I-Maine) — has helped broker a tentative deal that would reopen government funding through January and postpone a vote on extending the health-care subsidies under the Affordable Care Act until mid-December.
Under the outline of the proposed agreement, three full-year spending bills would be approved now — covering food aid, veterans’ programs, and the legislative branch — while the remainder of federal funding would be extended via a continuing resolution until late January. The deal also includes a promise that furloughed federal workers will be reinstated and reimbursed once the shutdown ends.
However, the arrangement remains far from agreed. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) described it as “coming together,” but cautioned that it is not finalized. Resistance remains on both sides: Republicans are wary of tying health-care policy to the funding bill, while more progressive Democrats oppose reopening the government without a firm guarantee on the subsidy extension.
Still, the shift in tone marks the first real sign of movement in the stalemate. Republicans and Democrats alike are feeling the pressure as the shutdown drags on, disrupting air travel, delaying aid programs, and causing pay interruptions for hundreds of thousands of federal employees.
A vote to advance the appropriations package could occur as early as Sunday night in the Senate, but passage remains uncertain, and the bill must still go to the House and receive the president’s signature.
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