By Douglas V. Gibbs
After 40 days of gridlock, furloughs, and mounting political pressure, the federal government appears poised to reopen. A bipartisan breakthrough in the U.S. Senate has cleared a key procedural hurdle, setting the stage for a final vote on a continuing resolution that would fund government operations through January 30, 2026.
The turning point came only three days after Democratic Senator Ed Markey of Massachusetts blocked a symbolic measure that would have frozen congressional pay during the shutdown. Eight Democratic Senators joined Republicans in voting to invoke cloture, delivering the 60-vote supermajority needed to break the filibuster and advance the funding bill.
At the heart of the agreement is a revised continuing resolution that extends government funding, but reverses the Trump administration’s firings of furloughed federal employees. This provision, added to the House version of the resolution, will now be attached to the Senate bill for a swift vote.
The deal was spearheaded by Senate Appropriations Chair Susan Collins (R-Maine), but its success hinged on a cross-party coalition. Senators Angus King (I-Maine), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), and Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.) played pivotal roles in brokering the compromise, navigating between progressive demands and Republican red lines.
For Republicans, the agreement’s appeal lies in what it omits: no funding for illegal aliens and no continuation of Obamacare subsidies; though what was offered was a promise to consider a vote on those subsidies in December just before they are set to expire.
The compromise has ignited a firestorm among progressive Democrats, many of whom had hoped to leverage the shutdown to secure broader policy wins. They were told to hold the line, but how are being asked to “fold without a single meaningful concession.”
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries voiced his opposition on X, vowing to do “everything in [his] power” to block the agreement when it returns to the House for final approval.
Despite the backlash, momentum appears to be building for a resolution. With Senate passage likely and moderate House Democrats signaling support, the end of the shutdown may be just days away.
Still, the political scars remain. The record-breaking government shutdown exposed deep fractures within both parties between pragmatists and purists, and how the Democratic Party strategy of manipulating establishment Republicans is no longer an option now that the Republicans are standing together under the MAGA banner.
— Political Pistachio Conservative News and Commentary
