22-Day Government shutdown becomes second-longest in US History

The ongoing US federal government shutdown became the second-longest in US history on Wednesday as it dragged into day 22 with no resolution in sight, surpassing the 1995-1996 lapse in funding. Since October 1, Senate Democrats have repeatedly blocked Republican attempts to reopen the government, with all but three members of the caucus voting against a House-passed measure to fund federal agencies through November 21.  The Senate is scheduled to reconvene Wednesday to attempt yet again to end the shutdown, as Democratic leaders demand negotiations with President Trump. Senate Minority Leader, Chuck Schumer urged President Trump to meet and negotiate on resolving the health care crisis and ending what Schumer called the "Trump shutdown." He told reporters, "We urged him to meet with us, and we said well set up an appointment with him any time, any place before he leaves. However, House Speaker Mike Johnson maintains that no high-level meeting will occur until Democrats vote to reopen the government. Johnson relayed on X that President Trump "confirmed he is ready and willing for the three of us to meet with Leader Jeffries and Senator Schumer as soon as Schumer reopens the government. Senate Majority Leader John Thune similarly signaled he is not interested in negotiating, telling reporters, I dont know what there is to negotiate. Open up the government first. Thune indicated his strategy is to continue calling votes on the seven-week stopgap funding bill, despite Democratic opposition, believing they will "eventually... come around." President Trump, speaking at a White House gathering for congressional Republicans, likened the Democrats refusal to an extortion attempt, demanding they "vote for the clean bipartisan [continuing resolution] and reopen our government its got to be reopened right now. Senator Schumer has insisted that Republicans include an extension of enhanced pandemic health insurance subsidies for approximately 22 million people who purchased policies on Affordable Care Act exchanges. The White House countered that these benefits do not expire until December 31, allowing time for negotiation once the government is operational again. The shutdown's escalating duration has severe consequences. Roughly 750,000 federal workers have been furloughed, and the Trump administration has begun the process to permanently lay off thousands. If the shutdown persists, federal workers will miss their first full paychecks on Friday, and members of the armed forces are at risk of not being paid the following week, on October 31. The now second-longest shutdown surpasses the 21-day lapse in 1995-1996, which was triggered when then-President Bill Clinton vetoed a budget with spending cuts passed by the GOP-controlled Congress. The longest government shutdown in US history remains the 35-day shutdown of 2018-2019, which also occurred during President Trumps first term.The post 22-Day Government shutdown becomes second-longest in US History appeared first on Linda Ikeji Blog.