Thousands of Federal Aviation Administration workers have been furloughed and nearly 14,000 air traffic controllers will work without pay as the partial government shutdown drags into its third day -- and now GOP hard-liners are threatening to derail a potential vote to reopen the government.
The shutdown, sparked by an impasse over funding for immigration enforcement amid a pair of fatal shootings by federal law enforcement in Minneapolis, comes just months after the longest shutdown in U.S. history.
All eyes are now on the House to vote to reopen the government.
The Senate on Friday voted to separate a Department of Homeland Security funding bill from five others, funding other agencies for the rest of the fiscal year. Senators reached a deal with the White House to grant two weeks to negotiate Democratic demands for restrictions on Immigration and Customs Enforcement amid its immigration enforcement operation, including requiring agents to wear body cameras turned on and to not wear masks.
The funding fight over DHS erupted in the aftermath of the death of Alex Pretti, an ICU nurse, who was killed in a shooting involving federal law enforcement in Minneapolis on Jan. 24.
While DHS is affected in this partial government shutdown, there is not an immediate impact on ICE operations, which received $75 billion separate funding from the already-passed "Big Beautiful Bill."
House Speaker Mike Johnson said he's "confident" the House can approve the Senate-passed spending bills by Tuesday. The House Rules Committee is set to meet Monday afternoon for a procedural step, which is the first of many before a full vote on the House floor.
Ahead of a potential House vote on Tuesday, several GOP hard-liners are threatening to tank its prospects -- hoping to attach an unrelated bill that would require a proof of citizenship in federal elections known as the SAVE Act to the spending package.
That effort -- which complicates the equation for Johnson -- is being led by Republican Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, who said in a post on X that "many members of the House GOP … understand how important" the voter ID bill is.
“I have been clear: the SAVE Act/Save America Act must be attached to the rule for these appropriations bills and sent back to the Senate for a vote,” Luna said in a post on X over the weekend.
Republican Rep. Eric Burlison echoed a similar sentiment.
"What we are going to do is try is get the amendment to put the SAVE Act onto this package,” Burlison said during a radio interview. “So, if Democrats want to play games here, in my opinion, we should put the SAVE Act on here.”
These two hard-liners are signaling that if the SAVE Act is not attached to the funding package, they would potentially vote against a necessary procedural vote, known as the "rule" vote, which sets debate parameters for the legislation ahead of a final vote. The problem here is that Johnson's slim majority offers him virtually no room for defections, so a path forward to end the shutdown remains uncertain.
Meanwhile, President Donald Trump said in a social media post Monday that he is "working hard" with Johnson to get the government funding deal passed and to his desk, where the president vowed to sign it "into Law, IMMEDIATELY!"
"We need to get the Government open, and I hope all Republicans and Democrats will join me in supporting this Bill, and send it to my desk WITHOUT DELAY," Trump said in the post.
Impacts starting to be felt
The White House Office of Management and Budget sent guidance to agencies last week on implementing the shutdown process and to inform employees whether they will be furloughed, according to an OMB official.
Treasury Department funding is caught up in this shutdown, but the contingency plan for the IRS says they “will not experience a lapse in appropriations” and "normal IRS operations will continue."
With tax season underway, the IRS says they can carry out operations through Feb. 7.
More than 10,000 FAA workers have been furloughed, according to a contingency plan released by the Department of Transportation. Also, 13,835 air traffic controllers will continue to work without pay.
An alert on the Transportation Department's website says, "Portions of DOT are affected by a lapse in appropriations. Website information may be outdated, transactions may be delayed, and inquiries may not be answered until funding is restored."
DHS, which oversees Transportation Security Administration employees, has not released a contingency plan, but TSA employees are considered essential and are required to show up for work.
During the 2025 shutdown, TSA and air traffic control workers began to call out sick as the financial strain of missed pay began to have an impact. However, when the shutdown ended, the Trump administration distributed $10,000 bonus checks to those who did not take time off.
Americans won’t feel any significant changes from State Department operations during the partial shutdown. Passport and visa services and processing will continue, according to a memo sent to employees. Embassies and consulates will remain operational for national security reasons, according to the memo.
Health and Human Services does not have an updated contingency plan, but its website does have an alert stating, "Due to the government shutdown, information on this website may not be up to date."
