The Government Shutdown Just Got One Step Closer to Ending

SPEAKER_1 (0:00)

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Caitlin McCabe (0:18)

The government is one step closer to reopening after some Democrats break rank and vote to advance a spending measure. Plus, we unpack what President Trump's $2,000 tariff dividend would look like. And why your favorite pasta might be disappearing from the store.

Margarita Stancati (0:37)

If there really is a 107% tariff imposed on Italian pasta makers, many of these Italian pasta companies will pull out of the US market.

Caitlin McCabe (0:49)

It's Monday, November 10th. I'm Caitlin McCabe for The Wall Street Journal. And here's the AM Edition of What's News. The top headlines and business stories moving your world today.

The Senate took the first step last night toward ending the longest government shutdown in US history after eight members of the Democratic Caucus joined Republicans in voting to advance a spending measure aimed at reopening the government. The vote was 60-40 with Senators Dick Durbin of Illinois, Tim Kaine of Virginia, and John Fetterman of Pennsylvania among those that voted with the GOP. The Senate's next big step is to amend the measure and send it back to the Republican-led House of Representatives before being signed by President Trump, a process that could take several days.

Siobhan Hughes (1:40)

The timing of the next steps in the Senate was unclear, but what is clear is that this bill has the support to eventually sail through the Senate.

Caitlin McCabe (1:51)

That's Journal Congressional reporter Siobhan Hughes, who was following the vote late last night.

Siobhan Hughes (1:57)

As part of the deal, Senate Majority Leader John Thune has promised to give a vote to Democrats on extending certain expiring ACA subsidies by the end of the second week in December. The fate of those subsidies had been the main sticking point to reopening the government.

Caitlin McCabe (2:17)

As Siobhan explains, Affordable Care Act subsidies have been a point of contention during the shutdown, with Democrats pressuring Republicans to extend the subsidies in exchange for their votes. But a key development to ease the stalemate came when Senate Republicans proposed that some health care funding be provided directly to households instead. The GOP proposal involves sending money into flexible spending accounts, which could be used to cover deductibles and out-of-pocket costs. But there are still questions about how it would work and when it would be rolled out. Some Democrats were quick to dismiss the idea as insufficient with Democratic Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut calling it nonsensical. But those Democrats who voted for the measure, including New Hampshire Senator Maggie Hassan, said the bill would get key government operations back on track after days of painful air travel and ongoing confusion over when some 42 million Americans would receive food assistance benefits.

SPEAKER_5 (3:18)

This agreement funds SNAP and food assistance programs, ensures that law enforcement, air traffic controllers, and other federal workers get paid, reverses the president's recent reckless layoffs and prevents them from happening in the future, and crucially gives Congress a clear path forward to protecting people's health care.

Caitlin McCabe (3:41)

The bill would also ensure back pay for federal workers after the White House last month questioned whether the money was guaranteed. Last night's measure would fund most federal agencies through January.

A federal appeals court has denied the Trump administration's bid to avoid fully funding federal food assistance benefits for this month. The ruling came in just before midnight last night and means the government will have to make the payments under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, within 48 hours unless the Supreme Court intervenes. Court proceedings may not factor in if the shutdown ends and funding for SNAP comes back. The program typically costs the government $8 billion a month. But while there may be an end in sight for the government shutdown, don't expect air travel chaos to ease straight away. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy spoke to Fox News Sunday ahead of the Senate vote and said, capacity will remain reduced until air traffic controllers can come safely back to work.

SPEAKER_6 (4:46)

That trend line is getting worse, right? More controllers aren't coming to work day by day. The further they go without a paycheck because Democrats refuse to pay them.

Caitlin McCabe (4:55)

Last week, the Federal Aviation Administration ordered traffic to be reduced at 40 major airports. Yesterday, aviation data provider Siriam said almost 8 percent of scheduled flights across the country were canceled Sunday, up from 6.5 percent of flights on Saturday. That's likely to be exacerbated today with the FAA overnight restricting private flights at 12 major airports, including Atlanta, Dallas-Fort Worth, Denver and Chicago's O'Hare. Turning to TradeNow, and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has suggested that President Trump's idea of a $2,000 so-called tariff dividend for most Americans could come through the administration's existing tax cuts. Bessent was asked by George Stephanopoulos on ABC's This Week about a Trump social media post that promised the payout while criticizing opponents of tariffs.