EXCLUSIVE: Thune Warns Democrats Against Seizing On Election Results To Keep Shutdown Going
Senate Majority Leader John Thune is warning Democrats against extending the government shutdown after winning key elections Tuesday night in Virginia, New Jersey and California.
Democrats, emboldened by Tuesday’s favorable election results, say they will continue to keep the government closed, arguing that the party’s victory reinforced their shutdown strategy. Thune countered that extending the shutdown for 36 days would be a mistake, citing the hundreds of thousands of Americans struggling with missed paychecks and increasing disruptions to their daily lives due to lack of funding. (RELATED: Schumer shutdown poised to become longest ever. Some Democrats want to continue the fight)
“Continuing the government shutdown just because he performed well in elections seems like a very poor justification for extending what is already the longest shutdown in history,” Thune told the Daily Caller News Foundation during an interview in his executive office. “We can talk politically about who gets blamed, who doesn’t, but at the end of the day, no one wins, least of all the American people.”
The Democratic shutdown continues to jeopardize federal food aid for tens of millions of Americans, access to early childhood education programs and some health services, while hampering air travel across the country. Government employees, from air traffic controllers to Capitol Police, also report working without pay, with some turning to second jobs and food banks to make up for lost income.
Although Democrats appeared torn Tuesday over whether to end the record shutdown due to the growing burden on American families, many members of Schumer’s caucus signaled Wednesday that the fight is only beginning.
Democrats are pushing for an extension of Obamacare’s enhanced subsidies, which expire at the end of the year. Thune has proposed holding a vote on extending the subsidies after the government reopens, but Democrats have repeatedly balked at the proposal — as the shutdown drags on without an immediate solution.
“I think what people want is for Democrats to stand up and keep fighting,” independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, who is caucusing with Democrats, told reporters Wednesday.
“[T]The results should also give Democrats confidence that the American people support us as we engage in the fight to protect citizens’ health care and save our democracy,” Connecticut Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy said in a statement following Tuesday’s election results.
Schumer also indicated he would maintain his position in demanding health care concessions in exchange for ending the shutdown.
“Last night should send a message to Republicans that they simply cannot continue to ignore not only us, but the American people, for the sake of the entire country,” Schumer said Wednesday. “What we learned from last night was unequivocal. »
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) (L) and Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-NY) speak to reporters at the U.S. Capitol on September 29, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Thune reiterated that Republicans’ approach to ending the shutdown after the off-year election remains the same as the first day of the funding shutdown.
The majority leader insisted he would not negotiate on Democrats’ health care demands, including an extension of expiring Obamacare subsidies, until Democrats vote to reopen the government.
Thune also said he and Trump would likely not meet with top Democratic leaders until government funding was restored. Following Tuesday’s favorable election results, Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries requested a bipartisan meeting with Trump to discuss the shutdown.
“I spoke to the president a few moments ago and he said, ‘I’m happy to sit down with them as soon as they open up the government,’” Thune told DCNF. “The Obamacare solution is something I think the president is willing to have a conversation with them about, but we have to get the government to open up first.”
Despite Democrats’ rallying cries for the lockdown to continue, Thune said he was optimistic that the lockdown could end as soon as the end of the week.
Republicans need just five more members of the Senate Democratic caucus to cross partisan lines and support a clear, continuing resolution to restore government funding. A trio of Democratic caucus members — Sens. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, Angus King of Maine and Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada — have repeatedly supported the Republicans’ approach to ending the shutdown.
“We’re not there yet,” Thune said. “My sense is, at least from the conversations we’ve had, that there seems to be a more intense interest in ending the shutdown than there was before, which is good news.”
“We’re doing what we can to work with our counterparts on the other side here in the Senate to get to a point where we can get 60 votes,” Thune continued.
Andi Shae Napier contributed to this report.
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