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1h ago

Shutdown Risk Rises With Four Days Left as Senate Stalemate Deepens

A 60-vote Senate threshold leaves talks stalled, with OMB layoff planning raising alarms.

The Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Sept. 24, 2025, with just days to go before federal money runs out with the end of the fiscal year on Tuesday, Sept. 30. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
As lawmakers debate a government funding extension, Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., awaits the arrival of the leader of the Orthodox Christian Church, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew for a meeting, at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Sept. 17, 2025. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
The U.S. Capitol building in Washington, D.C.
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Overview

  • Republicans who control Congress push a clean short-term funding bill while Democrats demand health-care protections and rescission safeguards, and President Trump canceled talks with Democratic leaders.
  • The Office of Management and Budget told agencies to prepare potential reduction-in-force plans if funding lapses, a move Democrats call intimidation and some Republicans criticize as harmful to federal workers.
  • Betting markets now put the odds of a shutdown near 70% and several government-funded congressional trips next week were canceled, signaling expectations of a lapse.
  • Essential services such as air traffic control and TSA would continue without pay, national parks and some inspections could close or curtail operations, passport processing may slow, VA health care stays open while benefits offices could close, and USPS continues service.
  • Economists warn key data like the Oct. 3 jobs report could be delayed and estimate about $7 billion in weekly economic costs, with states like Massachusetts preparing for grant and payroll disruptions and some mortgages delayed due to paused flood insurance.