With a potential government shutdown looming, Democrats and Republicans exchanged blame on Tuesday as they failed to reach an agreement on federal funding. The deadlock could result in hundreds of thousands of federal workers being furloughed or laid off if a resolution is not found before the midnight deadline.
The dispute centers on health care benefits and spending priorities. Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer accused Republicans of refusing to negotiate, stating, “It’s only the president who can do this. We know he runs the show here.” He added, “Republicans have until midnight tonight to get serious with us.”
President Donald Trump and Republican leaders maintained that their proposed funding bill is straightforward and should be passed without changes. Senate Majority Leader John Thune said Republicans “are not going to be held hostage” by Democratic demands. Despite a recent bipartisan White House meeting, little progress was made. Trump later posted a fake video mocking Democrats online.
On Tuesday, Trump warned that a shutdown could mean significant cuts: “cutting vast numbers of people out, cutting things that they like, cutting programs that they like.”
The last government shutdown occurred during Trump’s first term from December 2018 to January 2019, lasting 35 days—the longest in U.S. history—before ending amid disruptions such as airport delays and missed pay for federal employees.
Democrats are seeking an immediate extension of health care subsidies set to expire at year’s end. These subsidies were introduced in 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic to help low- and middle-income individuals afford insurance through the Affordable Care Act. They also want Republicans to reverse Medicaid cuts enacted this summer and for assurances against rescinding previously approved spending.
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries stated, “We are not going to support a partisan Republican spending bill that continues to gut the health care of everyday Americans.”
Thune encouraged Democrats to pass the funding bill now and debate tax credits later, suggesting some Republicans might consider extending them but many remain opposed.
A White House meeting on Monday included all four congressional leaders but ended without agreement. Schumer described the talks as “candid, frank discussions” about health care costs if expanded ACA tax credits expire December 31.
Afterward, Trump posted an altered video online depicting Schumer and Jeffries with offensive stereotypes—a move Jeffries called a “racist and fake AI video.” Schumer criticized Trump for his online behavior amid urgent negotiations: “we have less than a day to figure this out” while Trump is “trolling on the Internet like a 10-year-old.”
Democrats face internal pressure over their strategy regarding the shutdown. Some activists had previously called for Schumer’s resignation after he supported advancing a Republican-led funding bill earlier this year.
Preparations for a possible shutdown are underway across federal agencies. The White House has advised agencies to plan for workforce reductions if funding lapses, which could lead to layoffs rather than temporary furloughs for non-essential workers. According to estimates from the Congressional Budget Office provided in a letter to Sen. Joni Ernst, approximately 750,000 federal employees could be furloughed daily during a shutdown.
Senator Mark Warner noted mixed reactions among federal workers in Virginia: “What I hear from federal workers is they’ve been on a slow, shutdown firing since the beginning of this administration,” he said. “They want us to push back.”
Federal agencies have begun warning about possible impacts; for example, the Department of Housing and Urban Development displayed an alert stating: “The Radical Left are going to shut down the government and inflict massive pain on the American people.”
