Democratic and Republican U.S. senators have been working over the weekend to find a compromise and end the longest government shutdown in the country’s history.
But bipartisan talks showed little sign of progress as the working day ended Saturday with no agreement on reopening the government.
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The Senate is scheduled to reconsider the case in an unusual Sunday session.
The impasse has now lasted 39 days and is taking a mounting toll on the country, leaving federal workers without pay, airlines canceling flights and delaying food aid to millions of Americans.
Congress got off to a rocky start on Saturday, with President Donald Trump making it clear he was unlikely to compromise anytime soon with Democrats seeking a one-year extension of expired health insurance subsidies under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as Obamacare.
President Trump urged Republican senators on social media to redirect federal funds used to subsidize health insurance premiums into direct payments to individuals.
“I recommend that Senate Republicans save the poor health care provided by Obamacare by sending hundreds of billions of dollars, currently going to money-siphoning insurance companies, directly to Americans so they can buy better health care for themselves and have money left over,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform, without providing further details.
The ACA Marketplace allows people to purchase insurance directly from health insurance companies, primarily serving people who are uninsured through their employers or through Medicare and Medicaid government programs.
Approximately 24 million people in the United States take advantage of these subsidies.
If Congress allows the enhanced subsidies to expire, average premiums for those enrolled in the ACA exchanges are expected to more than double next year.
Democrats are demanding that Republicans agree to negotiate an extension of federal health care funding before the government reopens. Republicans say they first need to reopen the government.
“The path we should take again”
Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, who is leading talks among moderates, said Friday night that Democrats “need a new path forward” after Republicans rejected a proposal by Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer of New York to reopen the government and extend subsidies for a year.
Shaheen and others are negotiating with themselves and some rank-and-file Republicans on a bill that would pay for some parts of the government, such as food assistance, veterans programs and the Legislature, and extend funding for everything else until December or January.
The deal does not guarantee an extension of subsidies, only the promise of future health care votes.
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 also said this week that he would not be involved in the health vote.
Republicans hold a 53-47 majority, but need 60 votes to reopen the government.
Al Jazeera’s Mike Hanna, reporting from Washington, D.C., called the Senate’s weekend session “highly unusual.”
“But there were no votes that day. Republicans don’t want to vote unless they’re sure they can get the 60 votes they need to pass the bill or change the process,” Hanna said.
President Trump renewed his call on Republicans to end the filibuster, which requires the consent of 60 out of 100 senators to pass most legislation.
“Republicans could do this with a simple majority,” Hanna said. “But Republicans are concerned about doing this, fearing that the lack of investors will work against them if Democrats take control of the Senate.”
As Republicans reject Trump’s call, Senate Republican leader John Thune is eyeing a bipartisan package that mirrors proposals that moderate Democrats have envisioned. 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 limit the extension of government funding to November 21st.
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. 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 health care vote, but that outcome is not guaranteed.
Schumer continued Saturday to argue that Republicans should accept a one-year extension of the subsidies before negotiating the future of the tax credits.
“Doing nothing would be remiss, because people are going bankrupt, people are losing insurance, and people are getting sicker,” Schumer said in a speech on the floor. “If Congress doesn’t act, this is what will happen.”
