The House is preparing to vote on Wednesday on a short-term funding bill, seeking to end the longest government shutdown in American history—a political standoff that has paralyzed key federal services, delayed paychecks for hundreds of thousands of workers, and disrupted public programs like food assistance and air traffic control operations.
The stopgap spending package would reopen shuttered federal agencies and restore essential functions through January 30, providing Congress more time to negotiate a longer-term budget agreement. Nevertheless, partisan divides remain sharp, and tensions run high within both chambers of Congress.
Political Standoff Intensifies
Republicans, with a slender 219–213 majority in the House, will likely rally behind the bill because of Trump’s endorsement, despite fierce opposition from House Democrats. The shutdown — now entering historic territory — was sparked by a long battle over federal spending priorities and health insurance subsidies.
Eight Senate Democrats broke ranks earlier in the week to pass the Senate version of the bill, in a move defying their party’s leadership. The move, while ending the impasse for the time being, has angered progressive Democrats who say it fails to protect federal health insurance subsidies or address rising living costs.
The temporary funding plan will continue to add an estimated $1.8 trillion per year to the nation’s $38 trillion debt, a reminder of the long-term fiscal challenges facing the federal government.
Republicans Urge Unity, Democrats Condemn Deal
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., urged Democrats to put aside partisanship and support the funding measure.
“My urgent plea to every Democrat in the House is to think carefully, pray, and finally do the right thing,” Johnson told reporters.
Johnson had kept the House in recess for nearly two months as part of a pressure tactic during negotiations, a move frustrating both parties as public discontent grew over the economic fallout from the shutdown.
Democrats, led by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), called the agreement a missed opportunity to take on America’s growing affordability crisis.
“Donald Trump and Republicans think the affordability crisis in America is made up. That’s why these extremists haven’t done a damn thing to lower the high cost of living,” Jeffries wrote on social media. “The American people deserve better.”
What’s in the Stopgap Package
The bill includes three full-year appropriations measures funding:
Military construction projects,
Agriculture and nutrition programs, including food assistance for low-income families, and
Operations of the legislative branch.
It also includes the more contentious provision that would grant eight Republican senators the right to seek as much as $500,000 each in damages over claimed privacy violations related to the Justice Department’s investigation of the January 6, 2021, riot at the Capitol. The measure would retroactively bar obtaining a senator’s phone data without proper disclosure.
Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee, criticized the clause sharply:
“Not a cent for healthcare, but Republicans wrote in a corrupt cash bonus of at least $500,000 each for eight GOP Senators,” she wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
Epstein Files Loom Over the House
Beyond the shutdown battle, the House is soon likely to face renewed controversy. Lawmakers are expected to take up a petition demanding the release of all unclassified records related to the late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Speaker Johnson and Trump have resisted such efforts, citing concerns about privacy and national security.
Wednesday’s session also will mark the swearing-in of Democrat Adelita Grijalva, who won a special election in Arizona to replace her late father, Rep. Raúl Grijalva. Her addition gives Democrats the final signature needed to force a House vote on the Epstein records disclosure.
Way Ahead
The funding bill, if passed, will now head to President Trump’s desk, where he is expected to sign it into law. Trump celebrated the Senate’s approval earlier this week, calling it “a very big victory” and signaling confidence that House Republicans will follow suit.
While some conservative lawmakers like Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Victoria Spartz, R-Ind., have objected, the House Freedom Caucus — a powerful bloc that has often stood in the way of spending agreements — will not block this vote.
“I believe we’re all going to be on board with this,” said Rep. Andy Harris (R-MD), the group’s chairman.
Still, deep partisan divides over healthcare, social programs, and long-term debt are expected to resurface when the temporary funding measure expires early next year. A Nation in Anticipation of Relief Federal workers, contractors, and the millions of Americans who depend on public programs are awaiting an end to the shutdown, which is placing increasing pressure on lawmakers to deliver stability. With markets jittery and the public’s patience growing thin, the vote Wednesday may mark a temporary reprieve – or simply another chapter in Washington’s long-running budget wars.
