The U.S. government is finally open again after a 43-day shutdown.
Six House Democrats joined all but two House Republicans Wednesday night to vote to reopen the government through Jan. 30, ending a particularly pathetic chapter for our national political leaders. The final vote was 222-209.
The House Democrats who voted for the package were Reps. Henry Cuellar (Texas), Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (Wash.), Don Davis (N.C.), Tom Suozzi (N.Y.), Adam Gray (Calif.) and Jared Golden (Maine). All are from swing districts, while Golden is retiring.
Two Republicans voted no: Reps. Thomas Massie (Ky.) and Greg Steube (Fla.).
Two members didn’t vote — Reps. Michael McCaul (R-Texas) and Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-N.J.). Watson Coleman had a medical problem. McCaul’s office didn’t comment.
So who won? No one. This record-breaking shutdown was bad for the country, bad for the economy and especially bad for Congress as an institution — particularly the House. It was bad for hundreds of thousands of federal workers, it was bad for law enforcement, bad for military service members.
And closest to home, it was bad for the legions of Capitol Hill aides and employees who had to work without getting paid.
There were two competing visions about how this impasse would end. Democrats swore that President Donald Trump, Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune would cave and negotiate on health care. Republicans said they wouldn’t — and they didn’t. After more than 40 days of stalemate, Democrats folded a hand that was getting worse by the moment.
This shutdown was about one thing: expiring Obamacare tax credits and what that means for millions of ACA enrollees nationwide.
At the start of the shutdown, Democrats asserted the impasse was also about reversing GOP Medicaid cuts in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, plus Trump’s impoundment authority. But that only confused the issue. This was about the expiration of those ACA tax credits on Dec. 31.
Now it’s on Johnson and Thune to figure out if and how the Republican Party will address health care costs. So while the Democrats might’ve been responsible for the shutdown, Republicans face some very tough choices moving forward. The next few months are strewn with political landmines for the GOP.
This episode ended on a sour note for the Johnson-Thune relationship.
Senate Republicans quietly inserted a provision into the FY2026 Legislative Branch appropriations bill that allows GOP senators caught up in the Jan. 6 investigation to sue the federal government over the secret disclosure of their phone records. Senators can be awarded up to $500,000 for each violation.
Johnson said he was unaware that the Senate included the language and was very angry about it. The House will take up a bill next week to get rid of the provision, although it’s unclear if Thune and Senate Republicans will let it go anywhere.
Overall, this episode has seen the power of the House GOP leadership increase dramatically. Johnson singlehandedly kept the House out of session for six weeks despite an uproar from Democrats. He prevented Rep. Adelita Grijalva (D-Ariz.) from being sworn in for an unprecedented period of time.
What now? The damage that’s been done to Congress as an institution is almost incalculable. The House has been completely shut down for 54 days in the midst of this crisis. Members were home all that time — and getting paid.
From a practical standpoint, the House is behind the eight ball. Committees have been frozen, unable to move legislation or even socialize policies with members. The chamber has been in session just 23 days since July 1.
After being clobbered in Virginia and New Jersey elections last week, many Republicans feel as if they have a political imperative to pass legislation between now and next summer, when Congress essentially closes down for the midterm.
“It’s very simple: vote your district,” Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.) said. “Focus on affordability in every single aspect of people’s lives. And when it comes to immigration, lead with compassion.
They have no shortage of items to bring up. First up, there’s health care.
Democrats’ shutdown fight put a massive political spotlight on surging health care costs, and that has Republicans looking for options. Talks among House Republicans who want to extend enhanced Obamacare subsidies are picking up, and some backers are keeping their options open to secure a path to the floor.
The Obamacare cliff is the immediate challenge facing lawmakers. The subsidies expire Dec. 31, and Thune promised a vote before then.
Some Republicans are trying to put together a broader health care package, eager for a response to rising prices that doesn’t involve boosting Obamacare. But that would be an ambitious project that’s going to be difficult to pull off, especially if bipartisanship is off the table.
Trump said again Wednesday night that he wanted to give subsidies to individuals, not to insurance companies.
Johnson has an incentive to get moving. He’s going to want to head off any discharge petition — Democrats filed one that has a three-year extension, which isn’t palatable to Republicans. But also Johnson is not going to want to get jammed by the Senate, which is going to move a package before the end of the year.
If the GOP won’t agree to extend the enhanced Obamacare credits, don’t expect Democrats to cooperate on other health-care options.
“I’m just gonna tell you the main thing that has to be done is to address the health-care crisis. In particular, the issue with the [Obamacare] tax credits,” said Rep. Frank Pallone (N.J.), top Democrat on the Energy and Commerce Committee. Pallone added that “Medicaid cuts, cuts to hospitals, cuts to nursing homes” are all part of the mix too.
The federal highway bill needs to be renewed. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chair Sam Graves (R-Mo.) says he wants to use the opportunity to build new roads and bridges. This is something that the White House is interested in. Graves wants this bill passed by the spring.
Graves is also spearheading an effort to overhaul FEMA. The bill would streamline the agency’s processes and make the director a member of the president’s cabinet, removing it from DHS.
The annual defense authorization bill needs to get passed by the end of this year.
And there’s the appropriations process, which Congress has 78 days to finish. More about that in a moment.
