President Donald Trump on Thursday urged congressional Republicans to unilaterally end the government shutdown by eliminating the Senate filibuster — urging them to take an unprecedented step that GOP leaders have firmly opposed until now.
“It is now time for the Republicans to play their ‘TRUMP CARD,’ and go for what is called the Nuclear Option — Get rid of the Filibuster, and get rid of it, NOW!” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post.
The directive — which came after Trump returned from several days abroad — is likely to upend efforts on Capitol Hill to bring an end to the weekslong funding impasse. And it immediately ratcheted up the pressure on Republican leaders, who have adamantly opposed eliminating the 60-vote threshold for passing legislation as a way to end the shutdown.
Top GOP lawmakers have long argued for keeping that threshold in place, asserting that the filibuster benefits Republicans — and will serve as a key safeguard against Democrats passing transformative legislation the next time they’re in power.
The filibuster rule is unique to the Senate, and it gives the minority the power to block a bill from coming up for a vote as long as at least 41 senators oppose it. Since one party rarely wins more than 60 seats, proponents have argued that the filibuster encourages compromise and makes it more difficult to enact massive partisan reforms.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune earlier this month ruled out changing the Senate rules to end the shutdown, calling the filibuster “something that’s been a bulwark against a lot of really bad things happening with the country.”
At the time, Thune said he’d gotten no pressure from the White House to end the filibuster.
But Trump on Thursday appeared to abruptly change course, arguing that Republicans should take advantage of their Senate majority to end the filibuster and reopen the government.
“Now WE are in power, and if we did what we should be doing, it would IMMEDIATELY end this ridiculous, Country destroying ‘SHUT DOWN,’” he wrote. “If the Republicans are not using the Great Strength and Policies made available to us by ending the Filibuster, the Democrats will exercise their rights, and it will be done in the first day they take office, regardless of whether or not we do it.”
Trump’s new push followed a week on Capitol Hill where lawmakers on both sides signaled potential signs of progress toward ending the impasse, even as they conceded that a deal remained well out of reach despite widening fallout across the country.
The Senate is not slated to return to Washington until Monday evening, putting lawmakers just days away from breaking the 35-day mark for the longest-ever government shutdown.
Critical food aid for tens of millions of Americans is slated to end over the weekend. The White House on Thursday also sought to highlight the stress that the shutdown is putting on air traffic controllers by convening a roundtable of airline industry representatives and union leaders.
This story has been updated with additional details.
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