Pressure mounts on Congress to end government shutdown

WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President JD Vance said Tuesday he believes the U.S. military will be paid at the end of the week, although he did not specify how the Trump administration would reconfigure funding as pain from the second-longest shutdown spreads nationwide.

The funding fight in Washington took on new urgency this week as millions of Americans face the prospect of losing their food aid, more federal workers fail to receive their first full paycheck and recurring delays arise. airports attack travel plans.

“We think we can continue to pay the troops, at least for now,” Vance told reporters after a lunch with Senate Republicans at the Capitol. “We have food stamps that are set to expire in a week. We’re trying to keep as many benefits open as possible. We just need Democrats to actually help us.”

The vice president reiterated the Republican strategy of trying to convince a handful of Senate Democrats to vote for stopgap funding to reopen the government. But almost a month into the shutdown, it hasn’t worked. Just before Vance’s visit, a Senate vote on a bill to reopen the government failed for the 13th time.

Federal Employees Union calls for end to closures

Pressure is mounting on Democratic lawmakers to break the deadlock. That situation was amplified by the nation’s largest federal employees union, which on Monday called on Congress to immediately pass a funding bill and ensure workers receive their full pay. Everett Kelley, president of the American Federation of Government Employees, said both political parties have made their case.

“It’s time to pass a clear, continuing resolution and end this shutdown today. No half-measures and no gimmicks,” said Kelley, whose union carries considerable political clout with Democratic lawmakers.

Yet Democratic senators, including those representing states with many federal workers, appeared unwilling to back down. Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine said he was emphasizing White House commitments to prevent the administration from laying off more workers. Democrats also want Congress to extend subsidies to health plans under the Affordable Care Act.

“We need to come to an agreement with Donald Trump,” Kaine said.

But the stops become all the more painful the longer they last. Soon, with closures for a fourth full week starting Tuesday, millions of Americans may face hardship themselves.

“This week, more than any other week, the consequences are becoming impossible to ignore,” said Rep. Lisa McClain, chairwoman of the House Republican Conference.

How will the Trump administration reconfigure the funds?

The country’s 1.3 million active-duty military personnel were at risk of being killed. missing a paycheck Friday. Earlier this month, the Trump administration ensured they were paid by shifting $8 billion from military research and development funds to payroll. Vance did not say Tuesday how the Defense Department would cover troop pay this time around.

More importantly, the Trump administration says funding will run out Friday for the food assistance program 42 million Americans rely on it to supplement their grocery bills. The administration rejected using more than $5 billion in reserve funds to continue benefits through November. And it says states won’t be reimbursed if they temporarily cover the cost of benefits next month.

A coalition of 25 states and the District of Columbia filed a lawsuit Tuesday in Massachusetts that seeks to maintain SNAP benefits by requiring the Department of Agriculture to use SNAP contingency funds.

Vance said reconfiguring funds for various programs such as SNAP was like “trying to put a square peg in a round hole with the budget.”

The Ministry of Agriculture says the contingency fund is intended to help respond to emergencies such as natural disasters. Democrats say the decision on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, known as SNAP, goes against the department’s previous guidance for its operations during the shutdown.

Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer of New York said the administration made an intentional choice not to fund SNAP in November, calling it “an act of cruelty.”

Another program threatened by closure is Head Start, with more than 130 preschool programs not receive federal grants Saturday if the shutdown continues, according to the National Head Start Association. In total, more than 65,000 seats in Head Start programs across the country could be affected.

Judge blocks dismissals

A federal judge in San Francisco on Tuesday indefinitely banned from the Trump administration to lay off federal employees during the government shutdown, saying unions were likely to press their claims that the cuts were arbitrary and politically motivated.

U.S. District Judge Susan Illston granted a preliminary injunction barring the firings while a lawsuit challenging them plays out. She previously issued a temporary restraining order against the job cuts that was set to expire on Wednesday.

Federal agencies are prohibited from issuing layoff notices or acting on notices issued since the October 1 government shutdown. Illston said his order does not apply to notices sent before the closure.

Will lawmakers find a solution?

At the Capitol, congressional leaders mostly highlighted the challenges many Americans face because of the shutdown. But there was no movement toward negotiations as they tried to shift blame to the other side of the political aisle.

“Now public servants and every other American affected by this shutdown are nothing more than pawns in Democrats’ political games,” said Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D.

The House adopted a continued short-term resolution on September 19 to maintain funding for federal agencies. Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., has since held the House out of the legislative session, saying the solution is for Democrats to simply accept this bill.

But the Senate still hasn’t gotten the 60 votes needed to advance the spending measure. Democrats insist that any bill to fund the government also addresses health care costs, namely the soaring health insurance premiums that millions of Americans will face next year under plans proposed through the Affordable Care Act.

Window shopping for health plans delayed

Asked about his strategy for ending the shutdown, Schumer said millions of Americans will begin to see on Saturday how much their health insurance will increase next year.

“People in over 30 states are going to be appalled, appalled when they see their bills,” Schumer said. “And they will scream, and I believe there will be increased pressure on Republicans to negotiate.”

The enrollment window for ACA health plans begins Saturday. In recent years, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has allowed Americans to preview their health coverage options about a week before open enrollment. But since Tuesday, Health.gov appeared to show 2025 health insurance plans and estimated prices, instead of next year’s options.

Republicans insist they won’t engage in health care negotiations until the government reopens.

“I am particularly concerned about rising premiums for working families,” said Sen. David McCormick, R-Pa. “So we’re going to have that conversation, but we won’t have it until the government opens up.”

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Associated Press writers Lisa Mascaro and Joey Cappelletti in Washington and Marc Levy in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, contributed to this report.