Government Shutdown Continues as Bipartisan Talks Stall

Thu Oct 23 2025 00:38:03 GMT+0300 (Eastern European Summer Time)

As the government shutdown enters its third day, both parties remain entrenched in their positions, complicating efforts to resume operations. Key demands revolve around healthcare funding, while President Trump prepares for potential layoffs across federal agencies.

The government remains in shutdown mode on the third day, with Democrats and Republicans entrenched in a standoff over health care funding issues. Trump aims to leverage the shutdown for cuts across federal agencies, with layoffs looming. Bipartisan talks are ongoing but show minimal progress, leaving millions of Americans facing uncertainty regarding health care premiums and federal employment.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Hopes for a quick resolution to the government shutdown diminished on Friday as both Republicans and Democrats continued to harden their positions amidst rising tensions.

Senators returned to the Capitol for another vote on government funding as the shutdown reached its third day. However, no significant progress has been observed toward resolving the impasse. Democrat leaders insist on extending health care benefits, while Republicans push for a temporary reopening of the government based on a House-passed bill that maintains current spending levels.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune stated, Until they have eight or hopefully more — 10 or more — people who want to end the government shutdown, I’m not sure this goes anywhere. There are increasing concerns as the shutdown continues, with about 750,000 federal employees facing furloughs, potentially losing out on an estimated $400 million per day in wages, affecting the broader economy.

Efforts by Republicans to navigate through this shutdown are complicated by the Senate’s filibuster rules, which require a 60-vote threshold to pass funding legislation. This has enabled minority Democrats to leverage their 47 seats in a bid for policy concessions, particularly focused on health care, which could serve as a potential advantage in the upcoming electoral landscape.

House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries pointed out that failing to extend the Affordable Care Act tax credits will likely lead to significant increases in health care premiums affecting millions of Americans. He commented, “Understand this, over the last few days and over the next few days, what you’re going to see is more than 20 million Americans experience dramatically increased health care premiums, co-pays and deductibles because of the Republican unwillingness to extend the Affordable Care Act tax credits.”

Although Democrats seem to be adopting a high-risk strategy by voting for a shutdown to emphasize their demands, President Trump views the funding lapse as a unique chance to pursue far-reaching cuts within federal agencies. White House budget director Russell Vought has begun withholding funds for infrastructure projects in states represented by Democratic senators.

Negotiations remain in the early stages, with some bipartisan discussions occurring amongst senators about potentially extending ACA tax credits while working towards a short-term funding resolution. However, the path to collaboration appears fraught with challenges.

As lawmakers continue to intensify their critiques of each other's positions, both parties express confidence that the other will ultimately be held accountable for the ongoing shutdown. The American public has historically allocated blame to both sides in such instances, adding further complexity to the current political landscape.