Live

Government shutdown updates: Senate vote marks step towards ending federal shutdown

The bill advanced by a vote of 60-40.

Last Updated: November 9, 2025, 11:48 PM EST

President Donald Trump on Sunday offered a bit more insight into his proposal that Obamacare subsidies should go directly to Americans' Health Savings Accounts to pay for health care rather than sending funds to insurance companies through the Affordable Care Act.

Meanwhile, the Senate voted Sunday night on a test vote that would fund the government through Jan. 31 and end the 40-day government shutdown, the longest in U.S. history. Enough Democrats voted to pass the bill.

And the Department of Agriculture in a late Saturday night memo ordered states to reverse any steps they've taken to issue SNAP benefits and threatened to impose financial penalties on states that do not “comply” quickly.

Nov 07, 2025, 10:35 AM EST

Thune says Democrats 'have to take yes for an answer'

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, in an interview on Fox News, said he's providing Democrats another chance later Friday to vote on moving forward to reopen the government.

"The Democrats just have to take yes for an answer. We have given them everything, essentially that they were asking for," Thune said.

Thune said Republicans have offered Democrats a proposal to re-open the government – which includes holding a vote on the Affordable Care Act as well as moving on a package of appropriations bills. Though he reiterated that President Donald Trump won't directly negotiate with Democrats until the government is reopened.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune speaks to reporters on day 37 of the government shutdown, at the US Capitol in Washington, November 6, 2025.
Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images

-ABC News' Lauren Peller

Nov 07, 2025, 10:25 AM EST

Duffy says senators should stay in DC as long as it takes to reopen government

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, who previously served as a member of Congress, slammed senators for going home as the shutdown continues.

"When I was in Congress, we had shutdowns. I stayed here for a month. I didn't fly home. I sat in my office working on deals, working on solutions. Why are senators going home? If you can vote 14 times to keep the government shut down and create this gridlock in our airports, and you're going to go home -- they should sit here like Americans sit in airports. They shouldn't sit in their offices. They should sit in the Senate and figure out how they're going to come up with a deal to open this back up and not use the American people as leverage," Duffy said at Washington's Reagan National Airport on Friday.

Travelers walk through the ticketing area amid nationwide cancellations and delays at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington, Virginia, November 7, 2025.
Shawn Thew/EPA/Shutterstock

Duffy encouraged airline travelers experiencing delays or cancellations to call their representatives.

"To those passengers that are upset, listen, call your Democrat senator. Fourteen times they voted no to open up the government," he said.

Nov 07, 2025, 10:16 AM EST

Transportation Sec. Duffy says flight reductions are 'right decision'

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy visited Washington's Reagan National Airport on Friday morning as flight reductions take place at airports across the country.

"I want to hear about the passenger experience. What can we do better and get their feedback? I think that's always important to hear from the experience of the American traveling public," Duffy told reporters.

Duffy defended the administration's decision to direct airlines to cut 10% of their flights at the high-impact airports no later than Nov. 14.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy speaks to reporters during a visit at the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport on November 7, 2025 in Arlington, Virginia.
Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

"It is not a science. It is an art that we're trying to deploy to keep people safe in the airspace ... and we're trying to prevent the pressure that we now see building in the system," he said.

"These are the recommendations that have come from the FAA safety team, but you want us to look at what we see with regard to data and make really good decisions to keep people safe. That's what we've done today. I think it's the right decision," Duffy added.

An airplane flies past the air traffic control tower as people travel through Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, November 7, 2025 in Atlanta.
Megan Varner/Getty Images
Nov 07, 2025, 9:48 AM EST

Trump again calls on Senate Republicans to nuke the filibuster

President Donald Trump is once again calling on Senate Republicans to "Terminate the Filibuster" as the government shutdown stretches on, in multiple social media posts on Friday morning.

"Just say NO (Nuclear Option!). TERMINATE THE FILIBUSTER!," Trump wrote in one post.

The posts come ahead of a 15th vote on government funding in the Senate, though exact timing on the vote is unclear.

Donald Trump attends a dinner with the leaders of the C5+1 Central Asian countries of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan, in Washington, D.C., November 6, 2025.
Nathan Howard/Reuters

-ABC News' Michelle Stoddart

Related Topics

Sponsored Content by Taboola