Democrats stake out opposition to spending bill, raising threat of a
shutdown
[September 17, 2025]
By KEVIN FREKING
WASHINGTON (AP) — Democratic leaders lashed out Tuesday at a short-term
spending bill to avoid a partial government shutdown at the end of the
month, warning Republicans they will not support a measure that doesn't
address their concerns on the soaring cost of health insurance coverage
for millions of Americans.
House Republicans unveiled the spending bill Tuesday. It would keep
federal agencies funded through Nov. 21, buying lawmakers more time to
work out their differences on spending levels and policy for the coming
fiscal year that begins Oct. 1. Republicans said that they were
providing exactly what Democrats have insisted upon in past government
shutdown battles — a clean funding bill free of partisan policy riders.
“It’ll be a clean, short-term continuing resolution, end of story,”
House Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters. “And it’s interesting to me
that some of the same Democrats who decried government shutdowns under
President Biden appear to have no heartache whatsoever at walking our
nation off that cliff right now. I hope they don’t.”
The bill would generally fund agencies at current levels, with a few
limited exceptions, including an extra $88 million to boost security for
lawmakers and members of the Supreme Court and the executive branch. The
proposed boost comes as lawmakers face an increasing number of personal
threats, with their concerns heightened by last week's assassination of
conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer and House Democratic leader
Hakeem Jeffries have been asking their Republican counterparts for weeks
for a meeting to negotiate on the bill, but they say that Republicans
have refused. Any bill needs help from at least seven Democrats in the
Senate to overcome procedural hurdles and advance to a final vote.
The two Democratic leaders issued a joint statement Tuesday after
Republicans unveiled the short-term funding bill, saying that by
“refusing to work with Democrats, Republicans are steering our country
toward a shutdown.”
“The House Republican-only spending bill fails to meet the needs of the
American people and does nothing to stop the looming healthcare crisis,”
Schumer and Jeffries said. “At a time when families are already being
squeezed by higher costs, Republicans refuse to stop Americans from
facing double-digit hikes in their health insurance premiums.”
The House is expected to vote on the measure by Friday. Senate Majority
Leader John Thune said he would prefer the Senate take it up this week
as well. But any bill will need some Democratic support and it's unclear
whether that will happen.
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House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., left, and Senate
Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., speak to reporters to
criticize Republican efforts to cut health care spending, at the
Capitol in Washington, Thursday, Sept. 11, 2025. (AP Photo/J. Scott
Applewhite)
In past budget battles, it has generally been Republicans who’ve
been willing to engage in shutdown threats as a way to focus
attention on their priority demands. That was the situation during
the nation’s longest shutdown in the winter of 2018-19, when
President Donald Trump insisted on money to build the U.S.-Mexico
border wall. A 16-day shutdown in 2013 occurred as Republicans
demanded significant changes to then-President Barack Obama's health
care overhaul in exchange for funding the government and permitting
Treasury the borrowing latitude to pay the nation’s bills.
This time, however, Democrats are facing intense pressure from their
base of supporters to stand up to Trump. They have particularly
focused on the potential for skyrocketing health care premiums for
millions of Americans if Congress fails to extend enhanced
subsidies, which many people use to buy insurance on the Affordable
Care Act exchange. Those subsidies were put in place during the
COVID crisis, but are set to expire.
Some people have already received notices that their premiums — the
monthly fee paid for insurance coverage — are poised to spike next
year. Insurers have sent out notices in nearly every state, with
some proposing premium increases of as much as 50%. The
Congressional Budget Office has estimated that the number of people
without insurance would rise by 2.2 million in 2026, and by 3.7
million the following year, if Congress does not extend the enhanced
tax credits.
Johnson called the debate over health insurance tax credits a
December policy issue, not something that needs to be solved in
September. And Thune said that almost every Democratic lawmaker
voted for the short-term continuing resolutions when Joe Biden was
president and Schumer was majority leader.
“I’m sure you’re all asking the question, are we or are we not going
to have a Schumer shutdown?" Thune asked reporters Tuesday. “And it
sounds like, from what he is indicating, that very well may happen.”
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