The effects of the closure continued to spread, with 21 Smithsonian museums and the National Zoo closed, and more flights delayed.
President Trump follows through on threat and begins cutting federal jobs
President Donald Trump’s administration made good on its threat to lay off thousands of federal employees, with government agencies issuing “retrenchment” notices heading into the weekend.
WASHINGTON – Nearly two weeks after the stalemate, lawmakers are preparing for a second Senate vote to end the government shutdown as the effects of depleted funding continue to reverberate across the country.
The Smithsonian’s National Zoo closed on October 12th and the panda camera was taken offline, but the animals will continue to be fed. Flight delays are increasing due to air traffic control staffing issues, including at Sky Harbor Airport in Phoenix. At least 4,000 civil servants were told on October 10 that they would be laid off, rather than simply furloughed as in past government shutdowns, and the government warned that more were to come.
But lawmakers on both sides are expecting a longer stalemate ahead of events scheduled for Oct. 14, when the federal holidays end and President Donald Trump returns from a brief visit to Israel and Egypt, amid the first phase of a U.S.-brokered ceasefire plan. House Speaker Mike Johnson told “Fox News Sunday” that most Democrats have voted “eight times now” to approach the government in the House and Senate. House Majority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) said on the same program that Republicans view the health care costs at the center of the controversy as an “unrelated issue.”
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Senate Majority Leader John Thune said the chamber plans to vote again on the shutdown relief bill on Oct. 14, but that reopening the government still requires support from several Democrats.
The Senate has already failed seven times to approve House Republican bills that would have reopened the government by Nov. 21. Three senators who caucus with Democrats joined Republicans in supporting the bill, but the 55-45 majority fell short of the 60-vote majority needed to end consideration.
Thune (R-South Dakota) continued to blame Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) for the shutdown. Most Democrats are blocking the bill, which aims to restore Medicaid cuts and extend subsidies under the Affordable Care Act. Republicans have said they can negotiate on health care issues once the government reopens.
“Let’s hope five more Democrats join us, because as much as we’ve done a great job so far, there’s so much more we can do once Schumer shuts down,” Thune said on social media.
Democratic lawmakers from Maryland and Virginia will hold a press conference on October 14 outside the White House Office of Management and Budget to protest the Trump administration’s firing of thousands of employees during the shutdown.
Sens. Chris Van Hollen and Angela Alsobrooks of Maryland and Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia are also scheduled to attend. Maryland Reps. Jamie Raskin, Johnny Olszewski, Don Beyer, Suhas Subramanyam and James Walkinshaw are also scheduled to attend.
Lawmakers are calling on the administration to support federal workers and prevent rising health care costs, which is why most Senate Democrats oppose reopening the government.
House Democrats plan to meet at the Capitol on Oct. 14 “to discuss the path forward” despite the recess.
With Senate Democrats blocking approval of a House Republican bill that would reopen the government until Nov. 21, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) called a caucus meeting for 6 p.m.
Many Senate Democrats want to restore previously approved Medicaid cuts and extend subsidies under the Affordable Care Act to reopen the government. But Republicans say health care talks must wait until the government shutdown ends.
“That’s why it’s so important that House Democrats return to Washington to protect Americans’ health care, pay active duty soldiers, and support our hardworking federal public servants,” Jeffries wrote in the Oct. 11 letter.
