Congressional Democrats strongly oppose Republican-led efforts to mitigate the worst consequences of the government shutdown.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries told the Daily Caller News Foundation on Monday that he opposes stand-alone legislation to pay troops and federal employees who go to work during the funding period. Democratic lawmakers are showing few signs of wanting to end the 20-day shutdown, despite the fact that millions of federal employees face growing financial hardship due to the prospect of missing their next paycheck. (RELATED: Hakeem Jeffries Walks Around and Refuses to Say Whether Government Shutdown Will Last Beyond Thanksgiving)
🚨WATCH: Jeffries tells @AndiNapier that he does NOT support the legislation the Senate is expected to vote on this week to pay federal employees and the military, calling it a “political ploy.” pic.twitter.com/y0D9eQZhuE
– Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) October 20, 2025
“This seems more like a political ploy giving Donald Trump discretion over which employees should be compensated and which employees should not be,” Jeffries said during a news conference at the U.S. Capitol. “All employees should be compensated, and that will happen when we reopen government. »
Although President Donald Trump dipped into unused Pentagon funds to prevent a loss of pay for U.S. military personnel, they still face losing pay during the next pay period. Federal employees are expected to miss their first full paycheck Friday due to lack of funding.
The Senate bill would pay the cohort of federal employees who report to work during the shutdown.
Jeffries cited health care to explain why he couldn’t support legislation to pay military personnel and some federal workers. Democrats have consistently demanded that Republicans pair unrelated health care provisions, totaling more than $1 trillion, with a government funding measure in exchange for their support.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune said Democrats’ demands were in vain, but suggested they vote on extending COVID-era Obamacare subsidies after the government reopens.
Jeffries and Schumer, however, balked at this proposal to end the shutdown.
Jeffries notably led nearly all House Democrats to vote against a clean funding measure aimed at avoiding a September shutdown. The minority leader has since encouraged his Democratic counterparts in the Senate to keep the government closed until their demands are met, as the shutdown stretches into its fourth week.
House Speaker Mike Johnson said Monday he would call his chamber back into session to consider the funding measure in case it passes the Senate. Republicans will need seven Democrats to cross party lines to overcome the Senate’s 60-vote legislative filibuster.
The speaker also criticized Democrats for opposing efforts to fund the government despite the current funding gap, making it the longest complete shutdown in U.S. history. A 35-day shutdown during President Donald Trump’s first term did not impact all government agencies because Congress had passed five of 12 appropriations bills.
“This is the most expensive, most selfish and most dangerous political coup in the history of the United States Congress,” Mr. Johnson said Monday.
Andi Shae Napier contributed to this report.
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