US Senate rejects funding package for 14th time with shutdown in 35th day | US federal government shutdown 2025

The US federal government shutdown was poised to hit a record-breaking high on Tuesday after the Senate rejected for the 14th time a funding package passed by the Republican-controlled House of Representatives.

As the shutdown entered its record-breaking 35th day, frantic negotiations were continuing behind the scenes to end the impasse, amid expressions of alarm from both Democrats and Republicans about the devastating impact on millions of Americans.

The shutdowns threatened services like the federal food stamp program and forced employees to take unpaid leave or work without pay. If it continues past midnight tonight, it will surpass the 35-day closure that occurred during Donald Trump’s first presidency in 2018.

Amid concerns about its growing impact, the Trump administration moved Monday to provide emergency funds to keep the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (Snap) operating at 50% capacity, following court rulings that said it could not legally withhold the financial support. The program provides food assistance to 42 million Americans and costs about $9 billion a month.

But Trump, who has so far made little effort to break the impasse, reignited fears about Snap on Tuesday by threatening to hold the program hostage until Democrats cave in and vote in favor of a government funding package.

On social media, Snap said the aid would “only be given when the Radical Left Democrats open the government, which they can easily do, not before!” he wrote.

While Republicans have a 53-47 majority in the Senate, Democrats are able to block passage of the bill thanks to the filibuster, which requires the votes of 60 senators to pass. Trump called on Republicans to use their majority to throw out the filibuster.

The president’s latest threat against Snap appeared to be a sign of growing unease over the shutdown, which he sought to blame on Democrats but polls show a majority of the public believe Republicans and their administration are responsible.

The president has been largely absent from this shutdown debate, unlike the shutdown during his first term in 2018-19, when he fought Congress to build a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border.

Republican and Democratic senators are quietly negotiating the terms of an emerging agreement. Senators, with their leaders’ approval, are seeking a way to reopen the government, get the normal federal funding process back on track and find a solution to the crisis of expiring health insurance subsidies that have driven up premium costs across the country.

“Enough is enough,” Senate majority leader and South Dakota Republican John Thune said as he opened the deadlocked chamber.

Labor unions have increased pressure on lawmakers to reopen the government.

“We don’t want anything radical,” said Democrat Chuck Schumer, the Senate minority leader. “Lowering people’s health care costs is the definition of common sense.”

Since House speaker Mike Johnson sent lawmakers home in September, most of the attention has been on the Senate, where party leaders have outsourced negotiations to a loose group of centrist dealmakers from both parties.

At the heart of any solution will be a set of agreements that not only the Senate but also the House and the White House must approve.

Senators from both parties, especially powerful members of the appropriations committee, are pushing to get the normal government funding process back on track.

“The pace of talks has increased,” said Gary Peters, a Democratic senator from Michigan.

A significant number of senators also want some resolution to the dispute over Affordable Care Act subsidies, which expire at the end of the year.

But the White House is demanding that Democrats vote to fund the government before talks on health care can begin. White House officials are said to be in close contact with GOP senators, who have been quietly talking to key Senate Democrats.

The loss of federal subsidies that come in the form of tax credits is expected to leave many people unable to purchase health insurance.

Republicans, who control the House and Senate, are reluctant to fund the healthcare program, also known as Obamacare. But Thune has promised Democrats a vote on their preferred proposal at a later date as part of any deal to reopen the government.

That’s not enough for some senators, who see the health impasse as part of broader concerns about Trump’s direction toward the country.

Democrats and some Republicans are also pushing for guardrails to prevent the Trump administration from unilaterally cutting funding for programs that Congress has already legislated, as billionaire Elon Musk did in the “government efficiency department” earlier this year.