With the two parties at a standstill, the shutdown, now in its 33rd day, appears likely to become the longest in history.
**WASHINGTON (AP)** — Republicans and Democrats remained at a stalemate over the government shutdown through the weekend as it entered its sixth week. Millions of Americans face potential delays or suspension of food aid, while President Donald Trump pushes GOP leaders to change Senate rules to end the impasse.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said Sunday that Trump has spoken with Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) as he publicly and repeatedly called for an end to the Senate filibuster. However, Republicans have strongly rejected Trump’s calls since his first term, arguing that the rule requiring 60 votes to overcome objections in the Senate is vital to the institution and has allowed them to block Democratic policies while in the minority.
Leavitt described the Democrats as “crazed people” who haven’t shown any signs of budging.
“That’s why President Trump has said Republicans need to get tough, they need to get smart, and they need to use this option to get rid of the filibuster, to reopen the government and do right by the American public,” Leavitt said on *Sunday Morning Futures*.
Democrats have voted thirteen times against reopening the government, denying Republicans the necessary votes in the 53-47 Senate. Democrats insist on negotiations to extend government health care subsidies that are set to be cut off at the end of the year. Republicans, in turn, say they won’t negotiate until the government is reopened.
With the two parties at a standstill, the shutdown, now in its 33rd day, appears likely to become the longest in U.S. history. The previous record was set in 2019 when Trump demanded that Congress fund a U.S.-Mexico border wall.
### A Potentially Decisive Week
Trump’s push on the filibuster could prove a distraction for Thune and other Republican senators who prefer to stay the course as consequences of the shutdown worsen. These include missed paychecks for air traffic controllers and other government workers and growing uncertainty over the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
Republicans hope that some Democrats may eventually provide the votes they need, as Republicans hold repeated votes on a bill to reopen the government. So far, Democrats have held together, but some moderates have been in talks with rank-and-file Republicans about potential compromises—such as guaranteed votes on health care in exchange for reopening the government. Republicans need five additional Democrats to pass their bill.
“We need five with a backbone to say we care more about the lives of the American people than about gaining some political leverage,” Thune said on the Senate floor before the Senate left Washington for the weekend.
Virginia Senator Tim Kaine (D) told ABC’s *This Week* on Sunday that there is a group discussing “a path to fix the health care debacle” and seeking a commitment from Republicans not to fire more federal workers. However, it remains unclear if these talks could produce a meaningful compromise.
The coming week could also be crucial for Democrats as the open enrollment period for health care marketplaces governed by the Affordable Care Act opened on November 1. People are already seeing spikes in premium costs for the following year, meaning it may be too late for immediate changes.
Democrats are also closely watching the results of gubernatorial elections in Virginia and New Jersey scheduled for Tuesday.
### No Appetite for Bipartisanship
As Democrats urge Trump and Republicans to negotiate, Trump shows little interest in compromise. He immediately called for ending the Senate filibuster after returning from a trip to Asia during the shutdown.
Leavitt said Sunday that the president spoke to both Thune and Johnson about the filibuster. However, a spokesman for Thune said on Friday that his position remains unchanged. Johnson said on Sunday that Republicans traditionally resist ending the filibuster because it protects them from “the worst impulses of the far-left Democrat Party.”
Trump’s call to end the filibuster “is a reflection of all of our desperation,” Johnson told *Fox News Sunday*.
Throughout the shutdown, Trump has mocked Democrats, posting videos of House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries wearing a Mexican sombrero. The White House website even includes a satirical “My Space” page for Democrats, parodying the early-2000s social media site.
“We just love playing politics with people’s livelihoods,” the page reads.
Democrats maintain that they need Trump to intervene. Virginia Senator Mark Warner said on CBS’s *Face the Nation* that he hopes the shutdown could end “this week” because Trump is back in Washington.
“Republicans can’t move on anything without a Trump sign off,” Warner said.
### Record-Breaking Shutdown
The previous record-long shutdown lasted 35 days from December 2018 to January 2019 and ended when Trump backed down on his border wall demand. That shutdown came amid growing delays at airports and missed paydays for hundreds of thousands of federal workers.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy told ABC’s *This Week* that delays have already started at several airports due to unpaid air traffic controllers—and “it’s only going to get worse.”
Many workers face difficult choices: “Do I put food on my kids’ table, do I put gas in the car, do I pay my rent, or do I go to work and not get paid?” Duffy said.
As flight delays increased nationwide, New York City’s emergency management department posted Sunday that Newark Airport was under a ground delay due to “staffing shortages in the control tower,” limiting arrivals.
“The average delay is about 2 hours, and some flights are more than 3 hours late,” the department’s account posted. “FAA planning notes show a possibility of a full ground stop later if staffing shortages or demand increase.”
### SNAP Crisis
Also at risk are the 42 million Americans who rely on SNAP benefits. The Department of Agriculture planned to withhold $8 billion in payments to the program starting Saturday—until two federal judges ordered the administration to continue funding.
House Democratic Leader Jeffries accused Trump and Republicans of trying to “weaponize hunger.” He said the administration has found ways to fund other priorities during the shutdown but has delayed SNAP payments despite court orders.
“But somehow they can’t find money to make sure that Americans don’t go hungry,” Jeffries said on CNN’s *State of the Union*.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, appearing on CNN Sunday, said the administration is still awaiting direction from the courts.
“The best way for SNAP benefits to get paid is for five Democrats to cross the aisle and reopen the government,” Bessent said.
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*Associated Press writer Aamer Madhani contributed to this report.*
https://www.boston.com/news/politics/2025/11/02/shutdown-stalemate-set-to-drag-into-sixth-week-as-trump-pushes-republicans-to-change-senate-rules/