Bill to end longest shutdown in history advances to House-wide vote

The House will vote on reopening the federal government on Wednesday after lawmakers passed a key hurdle in the early morning hours of the funding bill.

The bipartisan agreement to end the 42-day government shutdown was passed through the House Rules Committee Wednesday night; All Republicans supported the measure, while all Democrats opposed it.

Now the resolution moves to the full House for consideration, where multiple people familiar with the GOP leaders’ speeches told Fox News Digital they believe it will pass with nearly all Republicans participating.

Passage from the House Rules Committee is a meaningful step toward ending the shutdown, which has now lasted nearly a week for nearly a week in U.S. history.

MIKE JOHNSON SPEAKING AFTER SPEAKING IN THE SENATE ABOUT GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN

The panel’s hearing to advance the bill lasted more than six hours; It began Wednesday evening and ended shortly after 1 a.m. Thursday morning.

Democrats tried to vote on changes to COVID-19-era enhanced Obamacare subsidies that expire at the end of this year and other issues the GOP opposes, but they all failed.

In a notable twist, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (DY) at one point testified in favor of his own amendment to extend those subsidies for another three years.

Members from opposite sides of the aisle also clashed several times during the lengthy hearing; Democrats have repeatedly accused Republicans of stealing Americans’ health care and taking a few weeks of “vacation” while staying in their districts during the shutdown.

House Rules Committee Chairwoman Virginia Foxx, RN.C. “I’m sick and tired of hearing about y’all having an eight-week vacation,” he said at one point. “I worked every day. I don’t know about you. I don’t want to hear anyone else say that.”

Democrats and some Republicans also took up a provision in the funding bill that would allow GOP senators to sue the federal government for $500,000 for secretly obtaining phone records during the investigation of former Special Prosecutor Jack Smith.

“I think a lot of people, if they look at this and understand it, they’re going to see it as a self-serving, self-serving thing. And I don’t think that’s true,” said Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas.

“I’m trying to figure out what we can do to force the Senate to say, ‘You’re going to repeal and fix this provision,’ without changing it here.”

The bill will now receive a House-wide “rule vote”; it’s a procedural test that, if passed, would allow lawmakers to debate the legislation.

Lawmakers are then expected to take a final vote on Wednesday evening on sending the bill to President Donald Trump’s desk for signature.

The Senate cleared procedural hurdles and advanced its government reopening package; The responsibility to end the shutdown now falls to Parliament. (Tom Brenner/Getty Images)

Trump signaled his support for the legislation in comments to reporters on Monday.

THE 5 LONGEST GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN IN HISTORY: WHAT HAPPENED, HOW IT ENDED

“We’re going to open our country very quickly,” Trump said when asked if he supported the deal.

The Senate broke weeks of gridlock Monday night to pass the legislation by a 60-40 vote, with eight Democrats joining the GOP to reopen the government.

Meanwhile, travel disruptions are causing chaos at US airports; air traffic controllers and Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers have been forced to work without pay since last month. Many of these workers had to take second jobs to make ends meet, leading to staffing shortages and flight delays that threatened to mar the Thanksgiving holiday.

Millions of Americans who rely on federal food assistance were also left in limbo amid the partisan fight over whether and how to fund those programs during the shutdown.

The bill would extend fiscal year 2025 federal funding levels through Jan. 30 to give negotiators more time to reach a longer-term agreement for Fiscal Year 2026.

This would also give lawmakers some progress on that mission and advance legislation that would provide funding for the Department of Agriculture and the Food and Drug Administration; Department of Veterans Affairs and military construction; and the legislature.

The United States Capitol building is seen in Washington on December 2, 2024. (Celal Güneş/Anadolu via Getty Images)

These are three of 12 separate bills intended to meet Congress’ annual appropriations and are paired with a vehicle called a “van.”

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In a victory for Democrats, the deal would also reverse federal layoffs carried out by the Trump administration in October, and those workers would be paid for the time they were furloughed.

A side deal in the Senate also guaranteed Senate Democrats a vote on legislation to expand Obamacare subsidies, which expire at the end of this year and were developed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

But House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., made no such promise in the House.