Thread: Shutdown Countdown: Updates | November 3, 2025

Vance pleads for 'five reasonable Democrats' to step up, end government 'hostage' situation amid aviation woes

Air traffic controllers miss paychecks as aviation industry leaders meet at White House

By Emma Colton Fox News

Published October 30, 2025 4:04pm EDT | Updated October 30, 2025 4:05pm EDT

Vance calls on 5 Democrats to join GOP and reopen the federal government amid aviation woes

Vice President JD Vance spoke with reporters outside the White House Oct. 30, 2025, when he rallied just five Democrats come forward and vote in favor of re-opening the federal government.

Vice President JD Vance called on five "reasonable Democrats" to come forward and join Republicans and the three Democrats who have voted to reopen the government as the shutdown drags on and heightens travel woes within the aviation industry.

"All we need to end the craziness, to pay the air traffic controllers, to pay the (Transportation Security Administration) agents, to pay the pilots, to make sure that food stamp benefits continue to go out to the American people who need them," Vance said during a gaggle at the White House Thursday afternoon. "All we need is five reasonable Democrats to join three moderate Democrats and 52 Republicans to reopen the government."

Vance held a roundtable at the White House Thursday afternoon with Secretary ofTransportation Sean Duffy, Airlines for America CEO and former New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu, Teamsters chief Sean O'Brien and other aviation and related industry leaders.

The roundtable comes as staffing issues persist among air traffic controllers, with the issues worsening this week as air traffic controllers officially missed their first full paycheck Tuesday.

FLIGHT DELAYS WORSEN AS UNPAID AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLERS FEEL GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN PAIN


Vice President JD Vance held a gaggle outside the White House to discuss the aviation industry's mounting woes as the government shutdown persists. (Oliver Contreras / AFP/Getty Images)

The government shutdown has continued since Oct. 1, when Senate lawmakers failed to reach an agreement on a funding package. Republicans have pinned blame for theshutdown on Democrats for allegedly working to include healthcare benefits for illegal immigrants in the package, which Democrats have denied while arguing Republicans are to blame due to not negotiating healthcare demands.

Only two Senate Democrats, Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada and John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, as well as independent Angus King of Maine, who caucuses with the Democrats, have voted alongside 52 Republicans to reopen the government. The measure needs 60 votes in order to pass.

"I've been a little bit unfair, and I want to correct this, because when I say the Democrats have shut down the government, it's actually the far left side of the Democratic Party," Vance added. "Because to their great credit, three moderate Democrats joined 52 Senate Republicans to vote to reopen the government. We need five more reasonable Democrats to put the American people first and reopen the government."

SEAN DUFFY FIRES BACK AFTER GAVIN NEWSOM BLAMES TRUMP FOR SHUTDOWN, TRAVEL DELAYS


"We need five more reasonable Democrats to put the American people first and reopen the government," Vice President JD Vance said Oct. 30, 2025.

Both Duffy and Vance described the shutdown as a "hostage" situation as families suffer without paychecks, federal food benefits run dry, and air travel hangs in the balance as Americans prepare to travel for the holidays.

"We are happy to talk about any policy issues," Vance said. "We're happy to talk about health care policy. We're happy to talk about tax policy. We're happy to talk about regulatory policy, but not at the point of a gun."

VANCE BLAMES SCHUMER'S FEAR OF AOC PRIMARY CHALLENGE AS SHUTDOWN CAUSE


Lines and wait times at airports across the globe are seeing issues right and left. (AP)

"You do not get to take the American people's government hostage and then demand that we give you everything you want in order to pay our air traffic controllers," he continued. "It's a ridiculous set of demands. Let's reopen the government and then let's sit down and talk about how to compromise on policy for the American people."

Duffy added: "Don't hold air traffic controllers hostage."

"A lot of our people can go through the miss of one paycheck, and it's hard for them, but a lot of them can get through it. None of them can get through two paychecks. And so, again, if Democrats don't get their act together very quickly, you're going to see huge problems," Duffy said.

The shutdown already has caused delays at airports in cities such as Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas and Newark, New Jersey, as air traffic controllers, who are employed by the Federal Aviation Administration, cope with staffing shortages.

Unions and trade associations related to airlines and airports increasingly have called on Senate lawmakers to pass a "clean continuing resolution" as the shutdown drags on, including the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association, an independent union representing aircraft maintenance technicians and other related employees, on Wednesday.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

"On behalf of the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association (AMFA) and our 4,400 members in the Unites States representing the aircraft maintenance technicians at Alaska Airlines, Southwest Airlines, Horizon Air, Spirit Airlines, and Sun Country Airlines, we urge Congress to end the government shutdown by passing a clean Continuing Resolution," AMFA National President Bret Oestreich said in a press release published Wednesday.

From below:

Vance is looking for, "... five reasonable Democrats to join three moderate Democrats and 52 Republicans to reopen the government."

Guess up until this moment, we don't have 5 "reasonable Democrats" willing to put themselves on the line and do what's "obviously" right for our Republic.

Senate Majority Leader Thune Blocks Democrats’ Bill to Fund SNAP Benefits Amid Shutdown

https://www.democracynow.org/2025/10/30/headlines/senate_majority_leader_thune_blocks_democrats_bill _to_fund_snap_benefits_amid_shutdown

The U.S. federal government shutdown has entered its 30th day.

On Wednesday, Senate Majority Leader John Thune blocked a bid by Senate Democrats to fund food assistance programs through the shutdown, after the Trump administration refused to draw from a $5 billion contingency fund to maintain SNAP, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

Without federal funding, some 42 million people who rely on SNAP could lose benefits beginning on Saturday.

Run On Food Banks Begin! State of Emergency Declared In New York, Air-Traffic Controller Shortages



Credits:
Channel: Dahboo77
Published: 10/31/25
3:41 minutes

When is next vote on government shutdown? Will the Senate vote today? Live updates, time


Lori Comstock
USA TODAY NETWORK

A Senate vote today, Friday, Oct. 31, 2025, to reopen the government won't happen with the Senate not in session today, and not set to return until Monday, Nov. 3, when the government shutdown 2025 will tie for the longest funding lapse in U.S. history. A House-backed bill has failed 13 times, with Democrats and Republicans failing to pass standalone bills that would have funded critical pain points, such as SNAP benefit cuts on Nov. 1.

President Donald Trump has called on Republicans to play their "TRUMP CARD" and "go for" the "Nuclear Option," referring to eliminating the Senate filibuster, which would remove the 60-vote threshold needed to pass legislation in the Senate. A GOP-backed measure that would fund the government has failed 13 times in the Senate, with votes falling short of 60.

More than 40 million Americans wait to see when SNAP food assistance will restart

https://www.npr.org/2025/11/03/nx-s1...nment-shutdown

NOVEMBER 3, 202512:02 PM ET

By
Maria Godoy
Jennifer Ludden


Food banks around the country are trying to pick up the slack from the pause in SNAP benefits. The courts say benefits must be restored but it is unknown when. Here, Park Hill Food Pantry volunteers in Denver work to fill the need on Friday.Hart Van Denburg/CPR News

It's not yet clear when the 42 million Americans who rely on the federal food assistance program known as SNAP will get their benefits for November. The Trump administration faces a Monday deadline to tell two federal judges how it plans to restore funding for SNAP amidst the ongoing federal government shutdown.

But even once funds start flowing again, it could take several days or more to get benefits into the hands of low-income families who depend on SNAP to put food on the table.



2025 GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN

The federal government is still shut down. Here's what that means in your community

About 1 in 8 U.S. residents get an average of $187 a month per person in SNAP, which stands for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. Nearly 39% of recipients are children and adolescents under 18, according to the Department of Agriculture (USDA), which administers the program.

Courts tell Trump to use emergency funds
Citing the government shutdown, USDA froze funding for SNAP beginning Nov. 1 — the first time that's happened since the country's largest anti-hunger program began six decades ago. On Friday, two federal judges ruled that this pause is likely unlawful.

Both judges said that Congress provided more than $5 billion in emergency funds for exactly this kind of situation, and they rejected the Trump administration's argument that it could not legally use that money to keep SNAP going. It not only can use the money, but must, the judges said.

In Rhode Island, Judge John McConnell Jr. called for the contingency funds to be used as soon as possible. A second judge, Indira Talwani in Boston, said officials could also tap additional money from customs revenues, but she left that decision up to the Trump administration. Both judges gave the administration until Monday to come back with a plan for how it would proceed.

After the rulings, Trump posted on social media that his lawyers would seek clarity from the court on how to fund SNAP. And if they got it, "it will BE MY HONOR to provide the funding, just like I did with Military and Law Enforcement Pay," Trump wrote.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNN Sunday that the Trump administration would not appeal the judges' ruling. He said it's possible that funding for SNAP "could be" restored by Wednesday, but "there's a process that has to be followed. We've got to figure out what the process is."

Partial payments would be 'a logistical nightmare'
Benefits will be delayed in November regardless of the outcome of the court cases because many beneficiaries have their cards recharged early in the month and the process of loading cards can take a week or more in many states.



2025 GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN

As SNAP benefits run dry, 'grocery buddies' are footing their neighbors' food bills

And if the Trump administration agrees to tap only the $5 billion contingency funding, that would fall well short of what it takes to run SNAP each month, which is about $9 billion. So people may not get the full amount of benefits they qualify for. In that case, the administration has said calculating partial payments is a logistical nightmare that could take time to arrange in the middle of a shutdown.

Several states have said they will use their own funds to cover any shortfall in SNAP funding. However, the Trump administration has warned it will not reimburse states. Several states, including Arkansas, New Hampshire and Washington, have also announced measures to help support food banks and pantries.

Even if partial funding is restored, there are still many logistical hurdles to get funds flowing to SNAP recipients, an Agriculture department employee who works on SNAP told NPR – they asked that their name not be used for fear of retribution. For one thing, they said, if you have partial funding, do you give it only to the most needy? Do you give people half their regular amount? Three-quarters? States would probably want a say in that. It's also unclear how partial funding would be divided among states. The employee wondered if the Trump administration might decide to give some states more SNAP money than others.

What is clear is that a lot of money has disappeared from people's food budgets, and anti-hunger advocates say that food banks alone will not be able to make up the difference.

"We're in uncharted territory," Elizabeth Keever, chief resource officer at Harvesters, a food bank in Kansas City, Missouri, told NPR Sunday.



PLANET MONEY

After the shutdown, SNAP will still be in trouble

"It's nearly impossible to make up the gap that SNAP is leaving us, but we're doing everything we can to make sure that we are easing this burden for folks," Keever said. "It's just this really scary moment where there's a lot of uncertainty. So the gap is massive, and at the end of the day, food banks can't necessarily fill it."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.