The U.S. government shutdown hit its third day on Friday with little indication of progress, setting the stage for the standoff to continue well into next week.
Republican leaders doubled down on their position that Democrats must accept the GOP’s temporary funding bill, which would reopen agencies only until late November while leaving space for negotiations over a broader budget agreement.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) accused Democrats of holding the country hostage. “They have taken the federal government, and the American people with it, as bargaining chips,” Thune said alongside House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.). “The priority should be keeping the government running, delivering services that Americans depend on.”
Democrats, however, say they will not vote for a package crafted without their input. They point to recent polling that shows more Americans faulting President Donald Trump and Republicans for the shutdown than Democrats.
“Donald Trump and his Republican allies own this shutdown,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) wrote on X.
So far, there are no indications of negotiations between party leaders. For the fourth time in recent weeks, the Senate is expected to vote down competing GOP and Democratic bills, each requiring 60 votes to advance.
Thune said the Senate would adjourn for the weekend, with lawmakers returning Monday — the same day House members are due back from recess. That schedule ensures the shutdown will extend into at least next week.
Democrats’ proposal would fund the government until Oct. 31 while extending Affordable Care Act subsidies and reversing Trump’s Medicaid cuts. It has no Republican backing.
“This is day three of the Trump shutdown because Republicans are insisting on raising health care premiums and stripping millions of coverage,” Schumer said on the Senate floor Friday.
Thune countered that Republicans cannot guarantee support for extending the ACA tax credits enacted during the pandemic. “I’m open to discussions,” he said, “but that can’t happen while the government is shuttered.”
Johnson also refrained from promising an extension of health care funding. “Republicans remain committed to lowering costs and improving care,” he said.
The House-passed GOP bill would keep the government open through Nov. 21 but without the health care provisions Democrats demand. Only three members of the Democratic caucus — Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.), Sen. Angus King (I-Maine), and Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) — have sided with Republicans in recent Senate votes.
Republicans are pressing other moderates and retiring Democrats to follow suit. “We just need a handful more,” Thune said. “Four or five additional votes and this bill can advance. At some point, they’re going to have to say yes.”
