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The longest government shutdown in American history is likely to end this week, as Congress moves closer to passing a funding bill.
Senate Republicans are pushing for a vote tonight to fund most federal agencies through January. The shutdown would come to a close once that bill also passes the House and receives a signature from President Trump, which could happen by the middle of the week.
The 40-day logjam finally broke last night when eight senators in the Democratic caucus split with the party to strike a deal with Republicans. Their plan would reverse federal layoffs and ensure retroactive pay for furloughed workers, but it did not include Democrats’ central demand — the extension of Obamacare subsidies that are slated to expire at the end of the year.
In response, Democrats from nearly every ideological corner rebuked the reopening plan, which left them all but powerless in negotiations over health tax credits and other issues. Chuck Schumer, the Senate minority leader, described the deal as inadequate; Bernie Sanders called it a “policy and political disaster”; and even Stefany Shaheen, a congressional candidate whose mother was one of the Democrats who defected, criticized the plan.
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