At the stroke of midnight, Washington went dark. The federal government is officially in partial shutdown after Democrats and Republicans failed to bridge their divide over a stopgap spending bill.
The immediate trigger was a clean continuing resolution (CR) passed by House Republicans, designed to extend current funding through November 21 and buy time for longer-term appropriations. Democrats in the Senate filibustered it, furious at being sidelined in negotiations and insisting that any CR also extend enhanced Obamacare subsidies set to expire at the end of 2025. Republicans argued that attaching over $1 trillion in new spending demands to a short-term bill was irresponsible and unnecessary.
“There isn’t any substantive reason why there ought to be a government shutdown,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) said. “This is something that’s been done routinely, 13 times under Democrats. But we are not going to be held hostage.”
With no agreement in place, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) issued orders for agencies to begin “orderly shutdown activities.” That means hundreds of thousands of federal employees will face furloughs or work without pay. Active-duty service members will remain on the job, but without paychecks for the duration. Essential functions — national security, air traffic control, certain public safety operations — will continue, but cultural and visitor sites like the Library of Congress, the Botanic Garden, and the Capitol Visitor Center will shutter.
🚨LOL: Chuck Schumer has “audio issues” on CNN when he gets confronted with the “SCHUMER SHUTDOWN” branding!
That’s rich. pic.twitter.com/nSldL7wZ9k
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) October 1, 2025
OMB Director Russ Vought had already warned agencies to prepare for more than the usual furloughs. His memo directed offices to consider “mass layoffs” and permanent reductions in the federal workforce, a move that could transform this shutdown into something more lasting. “It is unclear how long Democrats will maintain their untenable posture,” Vought wrote Tuesday.
President Trump sharpened that point during remarks in the Oval Office: “We can do things during the shutdown that are irreversible, that are bad for them and irreversible by them, like cutting vast numbers of people out, cutting things that they like, cutting programs that they like.”
Democrats responded with outrage. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer accused Trump of treating federal workers as pawns. “Democrats did not want a shutdown,” Schumer insisted. “We stand ready to work with Republicans to find a bipartisan compromise.” But as of midnight, no compromise was on the table.
The Congressional Budget Office estimated that roughly 750,000 employees could be furloughed each day, with the cost of their lost paychecks at about $400 million daily. If OMB follows through on permanent cuts, those costs would drop — but at the expense of a significant contraction of the federal workforce.
Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) has urged House Republicans to remain unified and resist the temptation of fundraising or public grandstanding during the shutdown. House Republicans, most of whom are outside Washington, are expected to return next week, while the Senate is bracing for repeated votes as both sides test each other’s resolve.
