House Poised to End Historic Shutdown

Nathan Dean, Senior US Policy Analyst for Bloomberg Intelligence, breaks down the latest on the government shutdown with the House set to return today.

US House lawmakers return to Washington on Wednesday for a vote to end the 43-day government shutdown, which has snarled air travel, delayed food aid to millions of Americans and forced federal workers to go without pay.

House Speaker Mike Johnson said he believes the legislation, a hard-fought compromise forged in the Senate and blessed by President Donald Trump, will pass quickly. But he’ll have to keep his fractious party in line in the face of stiff opposition from House Democrats whose leaders are urging them to vote against the legislation.

The problems caused by the shutdown, the longest in US history, have worsened in recent days, adding urgency to efforts to find a political resolution.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned on Tuesday there would be “massively more disruption as we come into the weekend if the government doesn’t open.”

“It is going to radically slow down, so the House has to do its work,” he said at Chicago O’Hare International Airport.

It could still take days for air travel to return to normal and probably longer for most of the 42 million low-income Americans enrolled in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program to receive delayed benefits. Lengthy backlogs and delays are likely across the federal government as it reopens.

On Monday, eight moderate Senate Democrats voted with Republicans on a compromise plan that would reopen the federal government through January 30 and fund some agencies through the end of September of next year.

Trump, who must sign the legislation after House passage, played a hands-off role in the negotiations, refusing to meet with Democrats and traveling frequently during the shutdown. His endorsement of the agreement, however, will help Johnson get Republican backing despite lingering reservations about some aspects of it.

Representative Andy Harris, who leads the ultra-conservative House Freedom Caucus, has offered his support, a signal that others on the party’s right flank may fall in line.

The legislation would reinstate federal workers fired during the shutdown, guarantee back pay for furloughed employees and prevent further layoffs through the end of January, essentially softening the cudgel Trump wielded while the government was closed.

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