Senate Democrats on Thursday blocked the GOP-backed Shutdown Fairness Act, which would have paid active-duty military and essential federal workers during the government shutdown.
The bill, sponsored by Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI), failed 54–45, short of the 60 votes needed to advance. Sens. Jon Ossoff (D-GA), Raphael Warnock (D-GA), and John Fetterman (D-PA) broke with their party to support the measure. Fetterman has sided with Republicans to reopen the government, while the two Georgia senators have opposed the broader stopgap bill.
The proposal would pay service members and federal employees deemed “excepted” or performing “emergency work” during the shutdown. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) said the bill would have covered over 300 congressional staffers, including Capitol Police, who worked overnight as Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR) spoke for 22 hours in protest of President Trump. Thune added that Johnson’s proposal also guaranteed pay for on-duty federal workers, including air traffic controllers, TSA agents, park rangers, and border and immigration officers.
🚨 BREAKING: Senate Democrats just blocked a bill to pay service members and federal personnel currently working without a paycheck during the shutdown.
Fetterman, Ossoff, and Warnock were the only ones to vote in favor. pic.twitter.com/lA0wKsJfJc
— Greg Price (@greg_price11) October 23, 2025
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) denounced the GOP bill as a “ruse,” claiming it would give White House budget director Russell Vought excessive power to decide which federal agencies reopen and which remain closed.
“It’s nothing more than another tool for Trump to hurt federal workers and American families and to keep this shutdown going for as long as he wants,” Schumer said on the floor. “We will not give Donald Trump a license to play politics with people’s livelihoods. That’s why we oppose this.”
The vote’s failure coincides with continued uncertainty over the government shutdown, which has dragged on for 23 days.
Day 23 of the Democrat shutdown.
Not only are Democrats refusing to reopen the government, but now they have voted AGAINST paying servicemembers and essential workers. pic.twitter.com/5Js82ZCvxL
— GOP (@GOP) October 23, 2025
