The Senate has advanced efforts to reopen the federal government, according to U.S. Senator John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), who addressed the progress made on legislation that would restore government operations and provide funding for key programs.
“Yesterday, the Senate took a major step forward on the path to reopening the government. The bill before us is simple. It’s clean, it’s bipartisan, it’s a continuing resolution, and it funds the government through January. It’s paired with three full-year appropriations bills. So, let me repeat that. Appropriations bills for the full next year. Now, these are bills that have already passed the Senate with bipartisan support – broad bipartisan support I would add – and they were negotiated on a bipartisan basis with the House. They’re fully funded in terms of veterans’ care. And this is critical, tomorrow is Veterans Day, our veterans need to know we stand behind them. It also fully funding on food assistance – SNAP and the Women, Infants, and Children. That’s what we’re debating here on the Floor of the United States Senate. I believe it’s reasonable, it’s responsible, and it’s ready to go,” Barrasso said.
Barrasso described how the shutdown has affected Americans across various sectors: “Let’s remember that this shutdown has caused serious pain to many, many American families. People have stood in line around the block at food banks all across the country, and that’s because 42 million Americans missed their SNAP payments. Flights were delayed and canceled because control towers are understaffed, people there working are overworked. TSA agents and air traffic controllers have been working for the last six weeks without getting paid. Yesterday, there were 2,300 flight cancellations. It looks like it might be even more than that today. Yesterday was one of the worst travel days in the last two years and today may be worse.”
He emphasized both economic impacts and disruptions to essential services resulting from missed Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) payments affecting millions of Americans as well as significant delays in air travel due to staffing shortages among federal employees.
“This shutdown has hurt our economy, and it has hurt our country,” Barrasso stated further during his remarks on Capitol Hill. “The government is finally on the path to reopening. This is the right result. This is what the American people need. They need certainty, and opening the government provides that level of certainty that the American people want, especially heading into the holidays.”
Barrasso expressed appreciation for President Trump and members of both parties who supported moving forward: “So I want to thank President Trump. I want to thank my colleagues in the Senate on both sides of aisle who voted to support that…President Trump’s leadership protected taxpayers and continues to protect country.”
Looking ahead at additional legislative work required for full-year funding beyond January’s stopgap measure—Barrasso noted priorities such as strengthening border security, investing in national defense spending levels set by Congress previously but requiring renewed appropriations approval each fiscal cycle—and promoting fiscal responsibility after recent years marked by high inflation rates.
He also criticized previous handling of appropriations under Democratic leadership: “Republicans are making appropriations process work again…Last year Senator Schumer refused bring single appropriations bill Floor even though Appropriations Committee passed out bipartisan—many times unanimous—appropriations bills…That’s no way run government.”
Finally addressing healthcare policy debates expected during upcoming negotiations over future funding packages—including criticism of Affordable Care Act premium increases since its passage—Barrasso concluded: “It’s time reopen government because Americans have waited suffered too long.”
