Efforts by both parties to pass competing versions of a spending bill collapsed Tuesday night in the Senate, triggering the first federal government shutdown since President Trump’s first term. After months of partisan stalemate, last-ditch negotiations failed, leaving federal agencies officially without funding.
The Congressional Budget Office estimates the shutdown will cost agencies $400 million per day, with roughly 750,000 federal employees furloughed. While these workers won’t be paid during the shutdown, a 2019 law guarantees back pay once it ends for those who are retained.
Under guidance from the Office of Management and Budget, thousands of furloughed employees may receive layoff notices. Federal unions filed suit Tuesday to block the move, while the White House budget office urged agencies to consider terminating programs that lose funding. President Trump and his OMB Director Russ Vought have long sought to permanently reshape the government and appear poised to do so under the shutdown.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) said he will continue pushing votes on the House-passed budget bill, betting that prolonged pressure will prompt more Democrats to cross the aisle. So far, Democratic Senators Catherine Cortez Masto (NV), Angus King (ME), and John Fetterman (PA) have broken ranks to support the GOP measure. Cortez Masto and King, who is an independent that caucuses with Democrats, cited concerns that a shutdown would only grant the Trump Administration more power to dismantle the government as the rationale for their votes. Despite these defections, Republicans still need at least five more Democratic votes to reopen the government.