On Friday, the GOP-led Senate cleared a significant procedural step to prevent a partial government shutdown, as a sufficient number of Democrats joined an embattled Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) in voting to invoke cloture on a stopgap bill ahead of a midnight shutdown.
A three-fifths majority — or 60 votes — was needed to prevent a filibuster on the continuing resolution, which provides funds to various federal agencies and programs through September 30. The cloture vote ended up being 62-38, with nine Democrats and one independent joining with 52 Republicans to advance legislation. Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) was the sole Republican to band with the rest of the Democrats and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) in opposing the bill.
In order to proceed, the Senate reached a deal in which members will vote on a few amendments from Democrats, including one that aims to block the use of funds by the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) effort overseen by Elon Musk. There will also be a vote on an offering from Paul that seeks to reduce appropriations for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). Paul said his amendment would codify the cuts made by DOGE. Further, there will be a vote on a standalone bill to protect roughly $1 billion in funding for Washington, D.C., that the continuing resolution would remove.
When consideration of the amendments comes to a close, the 99-page continuing resolution — which narrowly passed through the House — needs only a simple majority to pass through the Senate in a final vote. It is all but certain to prevail and make its way to President Donald Trump, who has already endorsed the funding patch as a means to keep the government running and later get to his domestic agenda priorities in national defense, border security, and tax cuts.
Schumer has faced immense blowback from the Left since he revealed on Thursday that he would not vote to stop the stopgap bill. In trying to justify his stance, the top Democrat said that he believed the measure was “very bad,” but he insisted “allowing” Trump “to take even much more power via a government shutdown is a far worse option” and therefore would not support that outcome.
CNN reported that Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) was mobilizing Democrats against Schumer’s plan and noted that some of her colleagues are privately urging the leftist firebrand to consider a primary challenge against him. Other Democrats, including their leaders in the House, broke with Schumer on how to deal with the continuing resolution. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) notably said “next question” when asked on Thursday if he had confidence in Schumer.
Democrats had offered a four-week spending patch as an alternative measure that they claimed would give time for them to reach a bipartisan agreement with Republicans. They have argued that passing the GOP-backed bill would help empower Trump to keep cutting government programs as part of the DOGE effort.
“We’re voting on yet another continuing resolution today because last year’s Democrat majority pushed off full-year appropriations again and again,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) said in a post on X earlier in the day. “I’m hopeful that enough Democrats will reject their party’s threat of shutting down the government to get this bill passed today.”
Ultimately, Sens. John Fetterman (D-PA), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Angus King (I-ME), Brian Schatz (D-HI), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Gary Peters (D-MI), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) joined with Schumer in voting to invoke cloture on the six-month continuing resolution.
In a post on Truth Social that likely did not ease frustrations among leftists, Trump said, “Congratulations to Chuck Schumer for doing the right thing — Took ‘guts’ and courage! The big Tax Cuts, L.A. fire fix, Debt Ceiling Bill, and so much more, is coming. We should all work together on that very dangerous situation. A non pass would be a Country destroyer, approval will lead us to new heights. Again, really good and smart move by Senator Schumer. This could lead to something big for the USA, a whole new direction and beginning!”
