Fetterman says he won't back government shutdown as funding deadline looms over Senate [View all]

Source: Post-Gazette

WASHINGTON — Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania says he won’t vote to shut down the government. But the possibility of a shutdown heightened Wednesday afternoon as Democratic leadership in the Senate declared Republicans’ six-month stopgap funding plan effectively dead on arrival.

After a meeting with Democrats, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said the measure passed by the GOP-controlled House on Tuesday evening does not have enough Democratic support to reach a vote, raising the stakes for lawmakers to scramble for a new deal before an 11:59 p.m. Friday deadline.

Mr. Fetterman, who earlier this month said keeping the government open is a core responsibility and that he refuses “to burn the village down in order to save it,” doubled down on Tuesday night after the House passed a continuing resolution keeping last year’s spending levels mostly flat other than a $6 billion increase in defense spending and $13 billion reduction in non-defense spending.

“The weeks of performative ‘resistance’ from those in my party were limited to undignified antics,” said Mr. Fetterman, who has frequently critiqued Democrats’ political messaging in recent months. “Voting to shut the government down will punish millions or risk a recession. I disagree with many points in the CR, but I will never vote to shut our government down.”

Read more: https://www.post-gazette.com/news/politics-nation/2025/03/12/fetterman-government-shutdown-republican-funding/stories/202503120059