The U.S. Senate appeared poised on Sunday to advance a bipartisan measure aimed at reopening the federal government and ending a 40-day shutdown that has disrupted essential services, delayed food aid, and snarled air travel across the country.
Senators are expected to vote Sunday night on whether to proceed with a House-passed bill that will be amended to combine a short-term funding resolution, keeping the government open through January 2026, with a package of three full-year appropriations bills.
According to a person familiar with negotiations, at least eight Democrats are likely to back the measure, enough to ensure passage in the Republican-controlled Senate.
The agreement, which still requires final approval from the House of Representatives before being sent to President Donald Trump for his signature, could take several days to complete.
Under a deal struck with a group of Democrats, Republicans have agreed to hold a vote in December on extending subsidies under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), a key Democratic priority during the funding standoff.
The resolution would also reverse some of the Trump administration’s mass layoffs of federal employees during the shutdown and secure funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) for a full year.
The compromise was brokered by Democratic Senators Maggie Hassan and Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, and independent Senator Angus King of Maine. However, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said he would oppose the measure.
Sunday marked the 40th day of the government shutdown, the longest in U.S. history, which has sidelined hundreds of thousands of federal workers, crippled food aid and national parks, and caused widespread delays in air travel.
The strain on air traffic control staffing has raised concerns about potential travel chaos during the busy Thanksgiving period later this month.
Senator Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) said the economic and logistical toll of the shutdown had forced lawmakers to seek common ground. “Temperatures cool, the atmospheric pressure increases outside and all of a sudden it looks like things will come together,” he told reporters.
White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett warned that continued closure could push economic growth into negative territory in the fourth quarter if air travel does not return to normal before Thanksgiving on November 27.
As Congress scrambled for a deal, President Trump renewed his push to replace ACA health insurance subsidies with direct payments to individuals, calling the existing subsidies a “windfall for Health Insurance Companies, and a DISASTER for the American people.”
Posting on his Truth Social platform, Trump said he was ready to work with both parties to “solve this problem once the Government is open.” Republicans have insisted they will only negotiate healthcare reforms after federal funding is restored.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), a close Trump ally, confirmed in separate television interviews that the administration would not formally introduce the president’s healthcare plan until after Congress passes a funding measure.
Meanwhile, Americans preparing to enroll in 2026 health insurance plans face sharply rising premiums, with analysts predicting average monthly costs could more than double once pandemic-era subsidies expire at year’s end.
Republicans last week rejected a Democratic proposal by Schumer to reopen the government in exchange for a one-year extension of the ACA tax credits.
Democratic Senator Adam Schiff accused Trump of seeking to “gut the ACA” and empower insurers to deny coverage for pre-existing conditions.
“So the same insurance companies he’s railing against in those tweets, he is saying: ‘I’m going to give you more power to cancel people’s policies,’” Schiff said on ABC’s This Week.
As the Senate prepares for a crucial vote, both parties face mounting pressure to restore normal government operations before the Thanksgiving holiday, and before the political cost of the shutdown deepens further.
Source: Reuters
Written By Rodney Mbua
