Deal close in U.S. Senate to reopen government

By Sarah Roderick-Fitch
The Center Square

A deal is close to being struck in the U.S. Senate to resume funding the federal government, indicating the end of the shutdown is close.

President Donald Trump confirmed Sunday evening, upon returning to the White House, that the upper chamber of Congress is “close” to a deal, a significant step forward in ending the longest government shutdown in history.

The deal comes after U.S. Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., refused to allow the Senate to recess ahead of the Veterans’ Day holiday, keeping the chamber in session throughout the weekend.

The shutdown, which began Oct. 1 at the beginning of the new federal fiscal year, had been increasingly impacting more and more Americans, including those receiving SNAP ( or food stamp) benefits, and air travelers.The country’s largest airports had been ordered to reduce the number of scheduled flights as staffing shortages increased because air traffic controllers and other workers were not being paid. Thousands of flights have been either cancelled or delayed in recent days as a result ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday.

The agreement reportedly does not include an extension of the Obamacare tax credits that were expanded during the COVID-19 pandemic, which was the major sticking point for Democrats who refused to vote for a U.S. House-passed Continuing Resolution that would temporarily fund the government at past levels.

This is a developing story.