(Background) Speaker of the House Mike Johnson talks to reporters after meeting with some of Jeffrey Epstein’s accusers at the U.S. Capitol on September 02, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) / (L) House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries speaks during a press conference at the U.S. Capitol on July 23, 2025 in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
OAN Staff Katherine Mosack 11:41 AM – Wednesday, September 3, 2025
GOP House Speaker Mike Johnson has maintained that it is up to Democrats in Congress to avoid a federal shutdown on October 1st — while specifically calling out Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer.
“The ball will be in their corner,” Johnson (R-La.) told reporters on Tuesday. “We’ve been moving forward on appropriations. We’ll be gathering steam to do that. We do not believe it’s in the nation’s interest to close the government down. So, if [Senate Minority Leader Chuck] Schumer, and the Democrats have that in mind, I think that’s deeply regrettable.”
Capitol Hill Republicans are also now considering a short-term funding extension, which would force Democrats to vote for it or risk blame for a shutdown. However, some Republicans oppose such a stopgap strategy.
Meanwhile, Democrats have demanded to roll back spending cuts to healthcare programs, such as Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act, contained in the GOP “megabill,” signed by President Donald Trump.
They argue the bill’s stricter work requirements and tighter eligibility rules are unnecessary measures designed to strip benefits from vulnerable Americans. However, after a slew of findings of fraud and waste, with many taking advantage of the system on the U.S. taxpayer’s dime, Republicans feel that the measure is necessary.
Additionally, although Medicaid and the ACA, under federal law, are not technically allowed to cover illegal aliens, many blue states still use their own taxpayer funds to extend Medicaid-like coverage to them. The “megabill” discourages that by reducing federal reimbursements to states that do so.
Donald Trump and House Republicans gutted Medicaid and are destroying the Affordable Care Act.
Meanwhile, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) has said that both he and Johnson have discussed how to reach a bipartisan deal to fund the federal government. According to Jeffries, they spoke about kitchen table economic issues, healthcare, public safety, and national security.
“In that conversation, I also made clear we’re not going to support partisan funding legislation. Period. Full stop,” said Jeffries.
Schumer briefly diverged from Jeffries earlier this year, brokering a deal to fund the government due to his concern that a shutdown would give the Trump administration an opportunity to harm the federal workforce.
“We’re not going to find ourselves in a situation where Republicans at the 11th Hour, present a partisan spending bill that hurts everyday Americans,” Jeffries told reporters.
President Trump expects Republican support for an extension but says Democrats are unlikely to back it.
