Washington is caught in a political quagmire as House Speaker Mike Johnson throws a wrench into Senate efforts to end a grueling government shutdown.
Now in its 37th day as of Thursday, November 6, 2025, the shutdown has exposed deep rifts over federal funding and the fate of enhanced Obamacare subsidies set to lapse by the end of next year, with Johnson refusing to promise a House vote on extending them despite Senate negotiations, as Fox News reports.
Let’s rewind to September 19, 2025, when the House passed its own funding measure, according to Johnson, signaling they’ve already done their part.
Fast forward to October 3, 2025, when Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., appeared together at a news conference in Statuary Hall at the U.S. Capitol, likely hoping to project unity.
Yet, any semblance of harmony seems to have crumbled by November 6, 2025, as Johnson publicly distanced himself from Senate proposals to tie a vote on Obamacare subsidies to ending the shutdown.
Thune has been pushing for a compromise, offering Democrats a chance to vote on extending the pandemic-era subsidies in exchange for their support to reopen the government.
Johnson, however, isn’t budging, arguing the House shouldn’t be roped into Senate deal-making. “The House did its job on Sept. 19. I'm not promising anybody anything,” he declared, sidestepping any commitment to a vote (House Speaker Mike Johnson).
His stance isn’t just a procedural dodge—it’s a clear signal to conservatives who dominate the House, especially the 189-member Republican Study Committee, which on November 6, 2025, rejected any subsidy extension, as reported by Fox News Digital.
While some moderate Republicans in competitive districts advocate for at least a temporary extension to buy time for broader healthcare talks, Johnson’s refusal to entertain a vote aligns with the hardline faction’s disdain for what they see as bloated government handouts.
Across the aisle, Senate Democrats aren’t backing down either, huddling on the afternoon of November 6, 2025, to hammer out their bottom line.
A dozen of them have been meeting to strategize, and after a strong showing in recent elections on November 4, 2025, many feel their shutdown stance is paying off, emboldening them to demand concrete wins like pairing subsidy extensions with any funding bill.
They’re not settling for vague promises of a process—they want a guaranteed outcome, a demand that’s proving to be a sticking point in negotiations with Thune, who admits he can’t control the results of any vote.
“I made this very clear to them, I can't guarantee them an outcome. I can guarantee them a process,” Thune stated, washing his hands of responsibility for what the House might do (Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D.).
That’s a bitter pill for Democrats, who know a subsidy extension without major reforms is likely dead on arrival in the Republican-led House, yet they’re holding firm to their strategy of leveraging the shutdown for policy gains.
Caught between a rock and a hard place, both sides are playing a high-stakes game of chicken, with the American public bearing the brunt of a shuttered government while politicians bicker over healthcare subsidies that could affect millions come 2026. Isn’t it time for some old-fashioned compromise, or are we doomed to more gridlock in a town that’s forgotten how to govern?
