Government Shutdown Enters 16th Day Amid Negotiations

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) on Wednesday announced a proposal to help end the government shutdown, which has now lasted for 16 days. Thune stated that he is willing to open a vote on extending subsidies for Obamacare as part of a potential deal.

Republicans have previously declined to attach these tax credits to a ‘clean’ continuing resolution (CR), leading Senate Democrats to vote down the House-passed CR for the ninth time on Wednesday. Thune urged Democrats to return to the negotiating table, offering to guarantee a separate vote on the subsidies ‘by a date certain’ if they first support the CR to reopen the government.

‘At some point, Democrats have to take ‘yes’ for an answer,’ Thune said during an MSNBC interview. His remarks echo earlier statements about negotiating with Democrats on healthcare reforms after re-establishing government funding.

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) has echoed Thune’s commitment to open discussions regarding the healthcare issues once the government is back up and running. Democrats, however, are demanding a full, permanent extension of the Obamacare subsidies tied to the CR, which both Johnson and Thune have declared impossible.

The ongoing stalemate over the CR has stretched into its third week, with Republicans asserting that they have nothing to negotiate over since the clean CR does not include any GOP priorities. A White House official indicated President Donald Trump, Thune, Johnson, and GOP lawmakers are united regarding the CR’s standing.

‘It’s not difficult to be on the same page when you’re on the right one,’ the official remarked. Thune acknowledged that he does not think more Democrats are ‘ready quite yet’ to support the GOP’s CR. ‘But there’s still a lot of conversations that are happening,’ he added.

Johnson highlighted that Democrats have previously approved similar clean CRs to keep the government open numerous times in recent years. He suggested that Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer is hesitant to support this measure due to fears of backlash from left-leaning factions within his party.

Meanwhile, a bipartisan group of senators is investigating an alternative route to resolve the impasse. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) is leading discussions for potential side-by-side votes aimed at reopening the government while also voting on a one-year extension of the enhanced Obamacare tax credits.

Though there are talks of this dual vote approach, it is unlikely to gain traction as Republicans have already dismissed the idea of pairing Obamacare extensions with the CR.