Congress yet to agree on new budget plan as shutdown continues

The government shutdown is set to enter its fifth week following Congress’s failure to enact a budget plan for October and beyond. While Republicans hold a majority in both chambers of Congress, the party lacks the needed 60 votes for any bill to pass through the Senate, giving Democrats some negotiating power during the shutdown. Democrats and Republicans blame each other for the current government shutdown, with stalled talks and no plans for compromise in sight. 

The expiring healthcare act is the primary issue currently blocking a bill to fund the government. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) is a healthcare reform law passed in 2010, and the act aims to make health insurance more affordable by implementing coverage standards and expanding Medicaid. However, with the act set to expire this year, millions of Americans are expected to face higher premiums starting as soon as 2026. Democrats seek an extension of the ACA to be included in any bill to reopen the government. Additionally, many Democrats want to see a reversal of Trump’s cuts to Medicaid, a program used by millions of elderly, disabled and low-income households. However, Republicans hope to simply reopen the government and leave the ACA as a topic for discussion down the road. 

Mike Johnson, Republican Speaker of the House, addressed the recent shutdown and his views on what needs to be done during a Fox News interview on Oct. 12. 

"We're barreling toward one of the longest shutdowns in American history unless Democrats drop their partisan demands and pass a clean, no-strings-attached budget to reopen the government and pay our federal workers," Johnson said. 

Chuck Schumer, Democratic minority leader in the Senate, spoke on the Senate floor on Oct. 16, calling out Republicans over the growing healthcare crisis.

“The ACA crisis is looming over everyone’s head, and yet Republicans seem ready to let people’s premiums spike by tens of thousands. Again, that's who the hostages are: the American people who need healthcare relief and who are demanding healthcare relief,” Schumer said.

Amy Bisson, an AP Government teacher at Samo, notes the uncompromising attitudes put forth by both parties. 

“I do believe that the Republicans had no intention of ever compromising. The bill was never opened up for compromise. I think that a big part of our government is compromising, and it's not always majority rule. It's majority rule, while protecting minority rights 
and I would say the Republicans are failing in that area,” Bisson said.

The government shutdown entails a furlough that sees tens of thousands of government employees not receiving pay until Congress can agree on a new funding plan. This has massive implications for federal employees who are now without a job or paycheck for an undetermined amount of time. Even amidst the shutdown, essential workers such as those in the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and Air Traffic Controllers are still required to report to work without pay. However, it is common for workers to call in sick en masse to avoid working without pay. On Oct. 6, for about 6 hours, the Hollywood Burbank Airport reported to have zero Air Traffic Controllers on duty. At airports such as LAX, flight cancellations will become much more frequent until workers are paid once again. On Oct. 25, flights departing LAX were halted due to a staffing shortage at a Southern California air traffic control facility.

The Trump administration has further agitated the situation as it dabbles with the issue of back pay, which reimburses federal employees for the hours they worked during the shutdown. The Trump administration has admitted there are talks of removing any back pay for the time many are spending unpaid at work. This puts more pressure on Congress to find an answer, as it fuels outrage and incentivizes more workers to call in sick rather than work for no pay.

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), the largest federal program to fight food insecurity in the United States, is also under pressure. SNAP, more commonly known as food stamps, offers millions of Americans financial aid to purchase groceries. The Department of Agriculture posted a notice on its website that SNAP benefits will not be issued for the month of November, leaving roughly 42 million Americans without financial assistance for food. 25 states, including California, have sued the Trump administration over the freezing of these food stamps during the shutdown.  The lawsuit alleges that the decision to freeze food stamps for millions of people is unlawful and strips away people’s protection from food insecurity.

“I think both sides are gonna have to answer to people who are not gonna have enough money for food or for gifts for their children. So I think it's gonna be a combination of everything. I think [it’s more than] just the air traffic controllers. It's people not having enough money to have a Thanksgiving dinner, or not being able to get enough food to eat for Thanksgiving. That's gonna put a lot of pressure on both parties to be the party that somehow makes it work,” Bisson said.