More Democrat senators should join three other caucus members who bucked Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and voted with Republicans to avoid a government shutdown, Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said Wednesday.
During a press conference outside the Capitol by GOP congressional leaders, Thune called on Democrat colleagues to support a continuing resolution (CR) during a vote planned for later in the morning.
A federal shutdown began soon after midnight after the Senate failed to approve a clean CR that passed the House.
The CR would give Congress several weeks to finish nailing down and approve appropriations for the fiscal year.
Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., John Fetterman, D-Pa., and Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, joined Republicans in voting for the CR to temporarily fund the government. The measure failed, however, 55-45 because 60 votes were needed to avoid a filibuster.
“Our vote last night was a bipartisan vote,” Thune said. “There were three Democrats that came over and voted with us because they know this strategy is a losing one, and it hurts the American people.
“It’s not about who wins or who loses or who gets blamed in all this. It’s about the American people.”
Thune said Schumer had “walked his Democrat colleagues into a boxed canyon” to satisfy “a bunch of liberal, far-left activist groups.”
“We’re going to vote later this morning on this, 24 pages. Does this look, partisan? Does this look dirty to you?” the leader asked while holding up a copy of the CR.
“[It’s] 24 pages to fund the government. Nothing more, nothing less, nothing else.”
Thune said Democrats, who are demanding funding for healthcare subsidies that are expiring for millions of people under the Affordable Care Act, have “taken the American people hostage in a way that they think benefits them politically.”
“Our Democrat colleagues in the House have been around here the last few days, I guess, flailing around, celebrating, celebrating the fact that they voted to shut down the government. How ironic,” Thune said. “This can all end today, folks. It needs to end today.
“We will continue to work together with our House counterparts, with the president of the United States to get this government open again on behalf of the American people.”
Before Thune spoke, House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., accused Democrats of changing their overall stance on clean CRs simply because President Donald Trump is in the White House now.
“Democrats themselves have voted to pass a clean, bipartisan CR just like this 13 times in the last few years, during the four years of the Biden administration,” Johnson said. “Republicans did the responsible thing, even when we were in the minority, to keep the government open. And today should be no different.
“There is nothing new in this legislation. There is no poison pill. There’s no partisan tricks, there’s no gimmicks whatsoever. The only difference today is the man who is sitting in the Oval Office.”
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.
