By KEVIN FREKING and STEPHEN GROVES, Related Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President JD Vance mentioned Tuesday he believes U.S. army members can be paid on the finish of the week, however didn’t specify how the Trump administration will reconfigure funding within the second-longest authorities shutdown.
The funding combat in Washington gained new urgency this week as thousands and thousands of Individuals face the prospect of shedding meals help, extra federal employees miss their first full paycheck and recurring delays at airports snarl journey plans.
“We do think that we can continue paying the troops, at least for now,” Vance instructed reporters after lunch with Senate Republicans on the Capitol. “We’ve got food stamp benefits that are set to run out in a week. We’re trying to keep as much open as possible. We just need the Democrats to actually help us out.”
The vice chairman reaffirmed Republicans’ technique of attempting to choose off a handful of Senate Democrats to vote for stopgap funding to reopen the federal government. However practically a month into the shutdown, it hasn’t labored. Simply earlier than Vance’s go to, Senate Majority Chief John Thune’s thirteenth try and advance the laws failed as soon as once more.
Volunteer Cindy Leiva helps load a automobile throughout a meals distribution focusing on federal worker households affected by the federal shutdown in addition to SNAP recipients, Monday, Oct. 27, 2025, in San Antonio. (AP Picture/Eric Homosexual)
Federal worker union requires finish to shutdown
The pressure is constructing on Democratic lawmakers to finish the deadlock. That was magnified by the nation’s largest federal worker union, which on Monday known as on Congress to right away cross a funding invoice and guarantee employees obtain full pay. Everett Kelley, president of the American Federation of Authorities Workers, mentioned the 2 political events have made their level.
“It’s time to pass a clean continuing resolution and end this shutdown today. No half measures, and no gamesmanship,” mentioned Kelley, whose union carries appreciable political weight with Democratic lawmakers.
Nonetheless, Democratic senators, together with these representing states with many federal employees, didn’t seem able to again down. Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine mentioned he was insisting on commitments from the White Home to forestall the administration from mass firing extra employees. Democrats additionally need Congress to lengthen subsidies for well being plans below the Reasonably priced Care Act.
“We’ve got to get a deal with Donald Trump,” Kaine mentioned.
However shutdowns develop extra painful the longer they go. Quickly, with closures lasting a fourth full week as of Tuesday, thousands and thousands of Individuals are more likely to expertise the difficulties firsthand.
“This week, more than any other week, the consequences become impossible to ignore,” mentioned Rep. Lisa McClain, chair of the Home Republican Convention.
Speaker of the Home Mike Johnson, R-La., faces reporters, joined from left by Majority Chief Steve Scalise, R-La., Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn., and Small Enterprise Administration head Kelly Loeffler at a information convention on day 27 of the federal government shutdown, on the Capitol in Washington, Monday, Oct. 27, 2025. (AP Picture/J. Scott Applewhite)
How will Trump administration reconfigure funds?
The nation’s 1.3 million lively obligation service members had been vulnerable to lacking a paycheck on Friday. Earlier this month, the Trump administration ensured they had been paid by shifting $8 billion from army analysis and growth funds to make payroll. However Vance didn’t say Tuesday how the Division of Protection will cowl troop pay this time.
Bigger nonetheless, the Trump administration says funding will run out Friday for the meals help program that’s relied upon by 42 million Individuals to complement their grocery payments. The administration has rejected using greater than $5 billion in contingency funds to maintain advantages flowing into November. And it says states received’t be reimbursed in the event that they briefly cowl the price of advantages subsequent month.
Vance mentioned that reconfiguring funds for these packages was like “trying to fit a square peg into a round hole with the budget.”
The Agriculture Division says the contingency fund is meant to assist reply to emergencies equivalent to pure disasters. Democrats say the choice in regards to the Supplemental Vitamin Help Program, often known as SNAP, goes towards the division’s earlier steerage regarding its operations throughout a shutdown.
Senate Democratic chief Chuck Schumer of New York mentioned the administration made an intentional selection to not the fund SNAP in November, calling it an “act of cruelty.”
One other program endangered by the shutdown is Head Begin, with greater than 130 preschool packages not getting federal grants on Saturday if the shutdown continues, in line with the Nationwide Head Begin Affiliation. All instructed, greater than 65,000 seats at Head Begin packages throughout the nation might be affected.
Will lawmakers discover a resolution?
On the Capitol, congressional leaders largely highlighted the challenges many Individuals are dealing with because of the shutdown. However there was no motion towards negotiations as they tried to put blame on the opposite aspect of the political aisle.
“Now government workers and every other American affected by this shutdown have become nothing more than pawns in the Democrats’ political games,” mentioned Senate Majority Chief John Thune, R-S.D.
The Home handed a short-term persevering with decision on Sept. 19 to maintain federal companies funded. Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., has saved the Home out of legislative session ever since, saying the answer is for Democrats to easily settle for that invoice.
However the Senate has constantly fallen wanting the 60 votes wanted to advance that spending measure. Democrats insist that any invoice to fund the federal government additionally deal with well being care prices, particularly the hovering medical health insurance premiums that thousands and thousands of Individuals will face subsequent yr below plans provided by way of the Reasonably priced Care Act market.
Schumer mentioned Republicans would like to close the federal government down than work with Democrats in stopping huge spikes of their medical health insurance prices. He mentioned common Individuals don’t need to pay an additional $20,000 a yr to cowl their medical health insurance.
“And we Democrats want to solve this crisis right away,” Schumer mentioned. “So lowering health care is not a crazy demand.”
Window-shopping for well being plans delayed
The window for enrolling in ACA well being plans begins Saturday. In previous years, the Facilities for Medicare and Medicaid Companies has allowed Individuals to preview their well being protection choices a couple of week earlier than open enrollment.
As of Monday, Healthcare.gov appeared to indicate 2025 medical health insurance plans and estimated costs, as a substitute of subsequent yr’s choices. CMS was anticipated to briefly deliver again all its employees furloughed through the shutdown, partly to handle the ACA open enrollment interval.
Twenty-eight senators, largely Democrats, signed a letter urging Trump’s administration to let ACA enrollees begin previewing subsequent yr’s medical health insurance choices on its market web site.
Republicans insist they won’t entertain negotiations on well being care till the federal government reopens.
“I’m particularly worried about premiums going up for working families,” mentioned Sen. David McCormick, R-Pa. “So we’re going to have that conversation, but we’re not going to have it until the government opens.”
Related Press writers Mary Clare Jalonick in Washington and Marc Levy in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, contributed to this report.
