The U.S. Senate has finally voted on a deal to end the government shutdown. The bill now heads to the House of Representatives. Eight Democrats voted with all but one Republican.
WASHINGTON DC – The Senate passed a government funding package Monday night that paves the way for ending the longest shutdown in history.
The 60-40 vote came roughly 24 hours after a bipartisan group of rank-and-file senators, in tandem with Majority Leader John Thune, reached an agreement that officially broke a weeks-long partisan stalemate.
[…] The package includes a three-bill “minibus” that would fund the Department of Agriculture and the FDA, the Department of Veterans Affairs and military construction projects, and the operations of Congress for all of the current fiscal year — the product of months of bipartisan, bicameral negotiations between top appropriators. All other agencies would be funded through Jan. 30.
The shutdown-ending agreement brokered in the Senate guarantees that federal employees laid off during the shutdown are rehired and gives federal employees back pay. It would require agencies to give written notice to Congress about the withdrawal of the layoff notices issued during the funding lapse, plus details on the amount of back pay owed.
It also would prevent some future firings with a blanket prohibition on reductions in force in any department or agency at least until the Jan. 30 end date of the continuing resolution. Democrats will also get a vote by mid-December on a bill to extend the enhanced ACA subsidies that are set to sunset at the end of the year.
Negotiators for the Senate Democratic Caucus — led by Sens. Jeanne Shaheen and Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire and Angus King of Maine — said the ability to vote on the subsidies constituted a major win. Negotiators made the case privately to their colleagues that the framework agreement was the best offer they were going to get from the GOP, who did not budge during the private talks on their refusal to get an ACA deal while the government was shuttered.
But Democrats in both chambers, including members of leadership, questioned why they would support an agreement when Republicans didn’t come to the table on their one key demand — negotiating on the Obamacare credits.
Some House progressives and outside groups were seething Monday and searching for someone to blame, with some calling on Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer to resign from his leadership position even though he, too, voted against the deal. (read more)
Be careful what you wish for. Every day that Congress meets, we loose a little bit more freedom!
“The only difference between death and taxes is that death doesn’t get worse every time Congress meets” – Will Rogers
Why would the GOP budge? Seems good that they are blaming Schumer. That makes me feel better.
They are posturing. Let me guess: the lone Repub holdout was ‘Harpo’ Paul. Honk honk
The Democrats will get their ACA vote in a few weeks. No more layoffs of radicalized imbeds without prior CONgressional approval. No more patriot act spying on CONgress critters only, with half million dollar penalties was a nice touch.
I liked the gubmint better when it was shut down. All the “Republicans” had to do was remove the filibuster. Easy peasy.
Spineless hacks the whole lot of them. We need free and fair elections to burn down the UNiparty, once and for all!
Will they? When the democrats set the sunset on it. Yea, they will get a vote and get nothing. Why when Republicans finally did the right thing would they concede anything
Sorry, ending the filibuster, though the President might have wanted it, is not a good idea.
Sorry, not this time.
there was focus on travel around thanksgiving that would have been all PDJT’s fault via the narrative machine.
add the fact that GDP is impacted with the sales going down
Posturing.
Ultimately, the Democrats get a vote on the ACA subsidies. National health is now an election issue for 2026.
If Thune does what the Democrats normally do and goes back on his word to hold the vote, or the Republicans vote “no”, Democrats have a talking point when the January deadline comes up.
Republicans vote “yes” and the ACA subsidies are renewed.
Art of the deal Democrat style. Demand the subsidies get renewed now, but settle for a vote that boxes the Republicans in.
For clarity (not debate pro or con), the substance of the matter:
The original ACA established “premium” tax credits (i.e., subsidies) for individuals and families purchasing healthcare in the insurance market.
The Biden admin, through the American Rescue Plan Act and the Inflation Reduction Act extended the original ACA Premium Tax Credits with “Enhanced” Premium Tax Credits through to Dec 1, 2025.
The original subsidy was capped at 400% of the National Poverty level. The enhanced premium removes that cap (as well as capping the maximum amount a household must contribute) – large cost increase. The flip side is that eliminating the subsidy may throw millions of people off insurance; and….the ACA healthcare marketplace will likely perish.
The core argument that ACA does not reduce healthcare costs is valid.
The Dems are adept at poison pills.
but the key point is that credits reduce cost to individuals who can not afford healthcare. some are currently getting needed treatments. point is if republicans take that away…oh boy..the stories…they will lose the midterms. fair thing is to fix before removing subsidies. but we know some republicans asses are so puckered when it comes to helping the lower classes….you will need a crow bar to pry it open
Not the full bottom line: credits shift the payment burden from those who fit under some income threshold to others (taxpayers: current or future through added debt). Costs associated with fraud are a separate but allied problem.
Not sure it’s class warfare as you posture. Republicans fought ACA from the beginning as unaffordable as well as a backdoor to increased gov’t control. The Dems are now pushing full throttle on this as a stepping stone to universal healthcare; they are hoping for short term political benefits. They are, after all, the party of fiscal irresponsibility.
ACA has always been about power.
Reopening the government before the holiday and getting ATC and flights back on time was in the script.
that would imply they really feared losing those few races.
were they really that close
and i’d guess the dems crossing over need to beat a republican in their area and its competitive
(similar to Fetterman tricking us into admiring him, when its only to keep PA blue because its competitive)
“The shutdown-ending agreement brokered in the Senate guarantees that federal employees laid off during the shutdown are rehired and gives federal employees back pay.”
What about the redundant or useless federal employees that were canned during the shutdown?
It also would prevent some future firings with a blanket prohibition on reductions in force in any department or agency at least until the Jan. 30 end date of the continuing resolution. Democrats will also get a vote by mid-December on a bill to extend the enhanced ACA subsidies that are set to sunset at the end of the year.
So no firings til Jan. 30, no matter how useless an employee, or a total dept? And won’t Dems surely vote to extend enhanced ACA subsidies? What about taxpayer-funded health care for illegals?
“Despite opposition to the funding package from most Democrats and Kentucky Republican Sen. Rand Paul, lawmakers ultimately declined to slow-walk the process, choosing instead to vote on the bill early Monday evening so they could leave town for a weeklong recess the next day.”
BINGO. Their recess. I haven’t had a recess since I was in grade school. And I certainly wasn’t sucking on taxpayer teat.
Their recess, and their special carve out from electronic surveillance.
”Let them eat cake. We’ll be watching.”
This isnt the only time for a carve out…..vaccines….ACA…….702’s Seems like all we do is watch.
As I’ve opined in another thread….the GOP actually outlasted the Dems for a change.
The deal could have been much worse, but somehow Trump got Thune to do what GOP Establishment types rarely do…..keep fellow party members in line. Amazing, really.
Watching the radical Dems castigate the 8 Senators who voted to end the filibuster has been delicious to watch 😎
I read that Trump has told the ATC employees to get their asses back to work NOW, rather than wait the few days it’s going to take to officially end the shutdown. And I support the notion of giving those who continued to work some kind of performance bonus. They deserve it.
Posturing.
The 8 Democrats who voted for this are not up for re-election. Two are retiring.
Senator John Ossof is up for re-election. He originally voted “yes” but voted “no” on this bill. A Democrat not up for re-election took his place.
Correct. No concessions were necessary if the Republicans had simply ended the filibuster to end the shutdown. Instead, we got posturing and a bunch of new, anti-MAGA initiatives.
Fake news is at it again. No swamp critters were harmed in this process.
The US citizens deserve a performance bonus fr putting up with their sh!t.
According to Sundance’s last article, we know the real reason they passed this tonight. And it isn’t their recess!
I guess the “Blue Wave” was no more than a ripple.
Who was the Republican hold out?
Rand Paul?
Yup.
John Solomon tonight indicated that there will be reporting on Insurance companies profits and big surprise Democrats got election funding.
Republicans never do a good enough job making this land with voters, just like the DOGE stuff. It’s Epstein this and White House Ballroom that in the media, and independents are right back on the Democrats’ team.
the narrative machine wouldnt push the message no matter what they say.
republicans arent their to postive message us anyway. only new and rare candidates try and they rarely last long
I don’t like this agreement. Will Mike Johnson of the House sign off on it? What does Trump say?
Speaking from the other side of the world. Did it actually achieve anything useful and is the controversial filibuster still in place.
Yes, the UNiparty rewarded themselves, as usual, and the gutless Republicans who hold the majority failed to remove the filibuster, which only constrains their side, confirming they are all in with the Democrats.
It’s a big club and we the people ain’t in it.
You skipped that the federally employed leeches got a longer vacation than almost all of us who pay their taxes to fund the government—with back pay and employment assurance. Leeches.
At the end of the day, the politicians in Kongress want the federal government to work exactly as Obama and Holder set it up to operate back then. It’s just too lucrative and great for incumbents to hang on forever and rule! They can yammer on forever with “controversies” and straw dogs to keep the folks entertained and contributing money.
The filibuster WILL be used, but it’ll be used by the Dems, once they’re regain the majority.
Count on Republicans, always too “polite” (code for “purchased”) to make the first move, to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.
On the plus side, they’re now on their recess, nibbling on delicate crustless sandwiches with their fellow betters.
“that would fund the Department of Agriculture and …..”
The Dept of Ag is where food stamps, low interest mortgages for illegals (and probably SNAP) is
funded from.
Yes, SNAP (food stamps) is funded by the Department of Agriculture. If this bill passes the House and President Trump signs it, SNAP will be fully funded for the rest of the fiscal year, which goes through September 30, 2026. We will have less leverage if the Dems try to shut down the government again, as SNAP will be fully funded. I don’t like the part about the inability to fire any Federal employees, either. Republican Senator Susan Collins was heavily involved in this and she is quite liberal.
Perhaps the Dins preferred to cut a deal with Senate RiNOs to join their vote to open the Govt,… Cuz Trump was about to get his End The Filibuster request done that would then require the RiNOs to pass Trump’s America First agenda legislation in total, something they resent almost as much as the Senate Dims.
Bottom line? We’ve been had and sold down the river again so the Uniparty retains their cover and power to ignore We The People’s will..
Hmmmmn? No more Filibuster, for the bigger Win!
What we learned from the Schumer shutdown:
The government can stop working and still get paid. To be honest…goals.
The budget is like a group project, all arguing with zero progress.
Somehow the IRS stays open like the portal to hell.
Kudos to everyone who worked for free, while Chuck and company did performance art.
They’re still going to have to deal with Health Care Insurance and Health Care costs. I have yet to see anyone in either party propose a plan that does not involve throwing tax payer money at the problem in one form or another.
The House will start voting as early as 4 p.m. Wednesday to reopen the government, according to a whip notice sent to members.
GOP leaders officially notified lawmakers of the expected votes after the Senate cleared the funding package Monday evening.
I might be a little slow, as it’s 5am here in Boston and I’ve been at work since 7pm last night, but…..the democRATS are big mad at Schumer (which is a good thing !!), but alot of them are saying that as of now there’s nothing from stopping healthcare’s skyrocketing costs.
Which is a HUGE concern for all of us normal folks, as politicians don’t have to worry about that. But isn’t the current national health plan….ObamaCare–passed unanimously by the dims with not one R vote….the dims fault ?? It’s their puppy, their law, THEIR RUNAWAY HEALTH COSTS for the rest of us….correct ?? The dims DESTROYED healthcare as we knew it.
Why the sudden concern on their part about the rising cost of healthcare ??
Forgot to attach this, from the bald as a baby’s bottom CONgresswoman that “represents” my district, Ayanna Cueball Pressley:
People want their members of Congress to fight for them with everything we’ve got.
Senate Democrats should listen and reject this funding deal that does nothing to stop healthcare costs from skyrocketing.
— Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (@RepPressley) November 10, 2025
Since there were some adjustments to the Senate version of the bill, the House will have to vote on the package again after it cleared a clean continuing resolution before. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), however, vowed to oppose the new version of the bill, because he claimed it fails to “decisively address the Republican healthcare crisis.”
The healthcare subsidies that the Democrats have been pushing to extend were expiring next year—a date that was set by Democrats.
Thank you Maw !!
The Repubs helped the Dims kick the ACA can down that road, don’t kid yourself. The FAKE SNOOZ may spin their yarns but we MAGA weren’t born yesterday.
Nobody’s mad. Nobody’s “concerned.” They all got what they wanted: the filibuster remains intact to protect the RINO half of the UNiparty and hamstring MAGA.
TY, Judith,… GMTA! No More Filibuster!
And the 8 “yea” voting Dims are just more UniParty Kabuki,… 2 of them are resigning and the others are not up for reelection for years,… so, their ‘castigation’ by the other (as usual) constantly outraged screaming Marxist Dims are just another part of the Kabuki show to convince their Low Info (Hat Tip: El Rushbo) and Radical Marxist voting base that they are Fighting!
Crap Weasel Thune!
So returns the employees we don’t need with back pay while continuing at taxpayer expense to make non Americans heathier and more prosperous. Meanwhile the lawmakers add more layers of protection from having to actually abide by the law. Isn’t it interesting that some things were pushed back until they had their holiday breaks.
Well, what do you know. Congress demands the Executive ask their permission about hiring and firings. Got to protect those ‘gubmint jobs’.
“It also would prevent some future firings with a blanket prohibition on reductions in force in any department or agency at least until the Jan. 30 end date of the continuing resolution.”
The ACA vote is interesting. Will we have another ‘Maverick McCain moment’ where some TDS infected Republican comes forward and gives thumbs up to keep paying insurance companies under the guise of health care?
Democrats will also get a vote by mid-December on a bill to extend the enhanced ACA subsidies that are set to sunset at the end of the year.
That credits vote is the dims midterm talking point and they will win if republicans do away with the credit without fixing healthcare first.
I don’t know if that is the case.
Remember, these subsidies went to insurance companies and not voters directly. And they have now disclosed that these subsidies might have been to subsidize ‘ghost accounts’ that don’t have a real person on the other side of the insurance card.
The Republicans need to verify this claim and disclose the practice if true. If so, then this talking point could bite the dims in the arse because it will be framed as dims wanting to pay off insurance companies for illegal aliens or fraud. Neither benefactor would be good.
So will the non essential furloughed federal employees get back pay for the time they were on furlough? Asking on behalf of a disgruntled taxpayer.
So basically every federal employee got a six week paid vacation because they will receive backpay. What a waste of money.
What does Rand Paul’s stance mean?
That he wants to fill John McShame’s shoes as the Rino Dog in the Manger?
A win for the GOP but as usual, a loss for the rest of us.
Carefully crafted democrat theater in progress.
Pick 8 Senators who either need to look moderate or who could moderate while retiring …. spin up the Democrat faux out rage machine and voila … the 8-DEMOCRAT Heroes … notice the Republicans are not being lionized for holding their ground but the Republicans are LIONIZING DEMOCRATS.
How many times did we see this when Senator Manchin of W VA and his like went off the Democrat Reservation at “key moments”?? Then by golly they got their heads right when it counted for the democrats.
This is a CR, which means even Obamacare that was due to expire … GETS EXTENDED along side all the other EXPIRED SPENDING ACTS as written (including built in increases) through January 2026 and the NEXT CR that extends it through 2026 Election Campaigns and the FY2026 Reconciliation Assessment.
So … who won???
8-Democrat Heroes who need to look good for their “moderate base”
Obamacare extended as is until the next CR in January 2026
Obamacare negotiations become a PUBLIC TRIAL in the media for the 2026 elections .. Heartless Trump supporters vs Savior Democrats and “concerned” RINO’s.
The far left element of the Democrat party consolidate their positions, and gets a focus group data point on reactions by their base to the faux outrage for 2026.
The Republicans looked weak, divided and feckless as they sat on their hands for 40-days.
It will be interesting to see how the Republicans Uni-Party members and President Trump’s Team play this one.
Well, three appropriation bills that were largely already approved have been included (referred to as “mini-bus”) so for those areas, there is no CR. The CR does include defense, needed to keep paying troops.
This seems to me about what I would expect. Can’t get all excited or bent out of shape about it. Too much unrealistic expectations in these comments. With essentially a 50-50 Congress, this shouldn’t be a big surprise.
I’m ready for the congress critters to get back to work. It is too bad there are so many Rinos and they can’t nuke the filibuster.
When have they ever been at work, for us, their employers???
Government should stay out of the healthcare business. They have shown their only expertise is in driving up costs.
Of course the gubmint will drive up costs:
More money to skim off the top, right?
Well this appears to have been a Greek tragedy carefully produced and acted by the Keystone Kops. Cameo rolls by Moe, Larry and Curly. Directed by Stan Laurel, with screenplay by Oliver Hardy.
Was this a win for Americans, because I don’t feel like it was. It sounds like everything remains the same as it did prior to the shutdown. I am probably missing something significant.
If only Thune and Johnson had cracked the whip to force those congresscritters to follow the 1974 Budget Law and actually write a budget for the first time since about 1997.
A lot this “funding deal” ends Jan 30, then the Dems go crazy again to shut down stuff and wreck everything.
Hopefully Team Trump is pulling together some knowledgeable messaging experts.
Only about 355 days until the 2026 elections. Campaigning never stops.
Stopping the Uniparty/Globalists/Dems is always an on-going chore.