WASHINGTON, D.C. — As the 39-day government shutdown — now the longest in U.S. history — drags into the weekend, federal workers, travelers, and people across the country continue to bear the brunt of the stalemate.
As millions wait for relief, senators remain in Washington struggling to strike a deal.
It’s a rare weekend Senate session as tensions run high on Capitol Hill.
“We have a shutdown, as you probably know, because the Democrats have gone that they’re crazy. They’re crazy,” said President Donald Trump on Friday.
“The president is frustrated, understandably,” said Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D.
“We’ve all been paid — but all these workers haven’t been paid. The Capitol Police protecting us haven’t been paid. Our military hasn’t been paid. That’s not controversial,” said Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa.
On Friday, Senate Democrats blocked a Republican-led bill to pay federal workers during the shutdown. Earlier, Democrats proposed their own plan to reopen the government with a one-year extension of Affordable Care Act subsidies.
“Yesterday, we offered Republicans a perfectly reasonable compromise to get out of this horrible shutdown,” said Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.
But Republicans quickly fired back, calling it a $26 billion handout to insurance companies.
“We don’t want this 26 billion going to insurance companies, where 20% is taken for overhead and profit. We want it to go to families, where 100 percent is paid for health care,” said Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., who proposed an alternative he said would send money directly to patients through pre-funded federal spending accounts.
“The problem is under the enhanced premium tax credit, if your insurance premium goes up, Washington just pays more,” Cassidy added.
On Friday, the Supreme Court granted the Trump administration’s emergency appeal to only partially fund food stamp benefits for November — deepening the shutdown’s ripple effects. The SCOTUS ruling comes in response to a judge’s order directing the administration to fully fund November benefits.
“To go all the way to the Supreme Court just to get out of paying SNAP benefits for hungry kids — it’s pathological levels of vindictiveness,” Schumer said. “Trump sent money to Argentina, $20 billion. If they wanted to find the money, they could.”
With both sides dug in, millions of Americans remain caught in the middle — and Washington, still in limbo.
