It’s not a weekend day in Washington.
After being unable to come up with a deal to reach the longest shutdown ever, senators are working this weekend to come up with a plan to end the stalemate.
It’s the first weekend they’ve worked in Washington since the shutdown began. The shutdown is now 39 days old.
There is no vote scheduled today, but senators are working to devise a plan.
Senate Republicans opted not to vote on legislation to potentially end the government shutdown on Friday, Nov. 7, which effectively stretches the funding lapse into the weekend as travelers begin to feel the effects of shutdown-induced flight reductions.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune said having a vote on Nov. 7 “doesn’t make sense,” citing a lack of votes to end the record-breaking shutdown on its 38th day. The Senate was previously expected to vote on legislation Nov. 7 that could have ended the shutdown.
President Donald Trump, in a Friday afternoon Truth Social post, urged senators to stay in Washington, D.C. until the shutdown was ended. The president’s plea comes as the shutdown is having widespread impacts as flights are being cut, food benefits are in limbo and thousands of workers remain without pay.
Is there a Senate vote today?
There is no planned vote on Saturday, which is the 39th day of the shutdown.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer speaks to reporters at the Weekly Senate Policy Luncheon news conference on Nov. 4, 2025 on Capitol Hill.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune listens as President Donald Trump speaks to Senate Republicans at a breakfast in the State Dining Room of the White House on Nov. 5, 2025.
Are we still in a government shutdown?
Yes, the government remains shut down today with flight cuts affecting 40 major airports with more than 750,000 furloughed federal workers ordered not to report to work. With President Donald Trump having lunch with the Prime Minister of Hungary today before heading to Palm Beach, we are in the longest shutdown ever.
When will the government shutdown end? When will it reopen?
The government shutdown 2025 is now on Day 39 today, Saturday, Nov. 8, with Senate Republicans and Democrats failing to pass any bills to ease the shutdown and reopen the government. Senate Republicans teed up a vote today on advancing legislation to potential reopen the government; however, it remains unclear how many Democrats will support the proposal.
The Senate has failed 14 times to reach the 60 votes needed to pass a House-backed measure that would fund the government through Nov. 21.
What was the longest government shutdown?
The government shutdown 2025, which we are currently under, is the longest government shutdown in U.S. history. It surpassed the now-second-longest impasse under President Donald Trump, during his first term, which lasted a full 34 days, from Dec. 22, 2018, through Jan. 22, 2019. The third-longest since 1981 occurred under President Bill Clinton, which lasted 21 days in 1996.
Records technically start in 1981, since before that, there was “no such thing as a government shutdown,” according to Time. Presidents had no cash and simply spent on credit, with federal agencies carrying on work until funding was authorized retroactively.
Lori Comstock is a New Jersey-based journalist with the Mid-Atlantic Connect Team.
USA Today Network contributed to this story
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Status of government shutdown 2025; Senate working Saturday
