Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R.S.D.) speaks to reporters during the Weekly Senate Policy Lunch Press Conference at the Capitol on November 4, 2025 in Washington, DC.
Tom Brenner Getty Images
As the Senate held an unusual Sunday session, Republican leaders said there was a chance “a deal could be reached” on a government shutdown, but there was no guarantee it would end the current 40-day stalemate.
There were few signs over the weekend of potentially crucial progress in the funding battle that has disrupted flights across the country, threatened food assistance to millions of Americans and left federal workers without pay. Republican leaders are working on a bill that would reopen the government through January while authorizing year-round funding for multiple government departments. The Democratic support needed for the effort was by no means certain.
“A deal is coming together,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said as he entered the session to open the session. But he cautioned that this was not a done deal. Senators say they need time to review the proposal, and it could be hours before any action is taken.
“Let’s see how the vote goes,” Thune said.
Democratic leaders are pushing for an extension of subsidies for health plans offered under the Affordable Care Act’s marketplace. Republicans rejected that proposal, but were open to a new proposal from a handful of moderate Democrats to end the shutdown in exchange for a later vote on Obamacare subsidies that would make insurance more affordable.
Average premiums for people enrolled in health exchanges under the law are expected to more than double next year if Congress allows the enhanced subsidies to expire.
Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, an independent and co-sponsor with Democrats, said a promise to hold a vote on extending the aid would be a “futile exercise unless there is a commitment from the Speaker of the House that it will be supported and that the president of the United States will sign it.”
President Donald Trump has made clear that a compromise is unlikely anytime soon. On Sunday, he renewed pressure on Republicans to eliminate the Senate filibuster rule, which prevents most bills from proceeding without the support of 60 senators. “Be a smart party,” he said in a social media post.
Moderates continue negotiations
Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D.N.H.) and others are debating a bill that would fund some parts of the government, including food assistance, veterans programs and the Legislature, and extend funding for everything else until December or January. This agreement will only come together with the promise of a future health care vote.
It’s unclear whether enough Democrats would support such a plan. Even if an agreement were reached, it seems unlikely that President Trump would support extending health benefits. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) said he would not be involved in the health vote.
The Senate’s Republican leadership needs just five more votes to fund the government, with a group of 10 to 12 Democratic senators participating in the talks.
Some Republican lawmakers say they’re open to extending COVID-19-era tax credits because it could lead to higher premiums for millions of people, but they want to put new limits on who can receive the subsidies. They argue that subsidies for plans should be provided through individuals.
President Trump criticized the current system in a post on Sunday, calling it “the worst health care at the highest cost.”
Republicans focus on new bill package
President Trump wants to quickly end the government shutdown and abolish the filibuster so Republicans can bypass Democrats altogether. Vice President J.D. Vance, a former Ohio senator, said Republicans’ desire to keep the filibuster in place is “wrong.”
But Republicans have rejected Trump’s calls, and Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.) told NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday that because of the filibuster, “the only place in government that both sides have to talk to is the Senate, and that’s good for America.”
Thune is focused on bipartisan policies that reflect proposals that have been envisioned by moderate Democrats. It is unclear what promises Thun, who has refused to negotiate, will make regarding health care.
The bill would replace a House-passed bill that Democrats have rejected 14 times since the government shutdown began on October 1. The current bill would only extend government funding until November 21st.
Democratic Party’s Choice
If Thune decides to move forward, a test vote on the new bill could be held within days.
In that case, Democrats will have to make an important choice. Will they continue to fight for a meaningful agreement to extend subsidies that are set to expire in January, while prolonging the pain of the government shutdown? Or they could vote to reopen the government and hope for the best, since Republicans have promised an eventual vote on health care, but that outcome is not guaranteed.
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer has argued that Republicans should accept a one-year extension of the aid before negotiating the future of the tax credit.
“Doing nothing would be remiss, because people are going bankrupt, people are losing insurance, and people are getting sicker,” Schumer said in a floor speech Saturday. “If this Congress doesn’t act, this is what will happen.”
