WASHINGTON, D.C. — Wyoming’s congressional delegation blamed Senate Democrats for the federal government shutdown set to take effect at 12:01 a.m. Wednesday.
“If Democrats shut down the government at midnight tonight, the idiocy will be theirs,” U.S. Senate Republican Whip John Barrasso said from the Senate floor Tuesday.
His comments were echoed by the other Cowboy State Republicans in the nation’s capital — U.S. Sen. Cynthia Lummis and U.S. Rep. Harriet Hageman.
Republicans back in Wyoming, Gov. Mark Gordon and Secretary of State Chuck Gray, also issued statements supporting the federal lawmakers.
Gordon warned that contracts, programs and employees that are “federally funded” could be cut.
Democrats in Washington, meanwhile, accused Republicans of not negotiating seriously to avoid the shutdown and of not showing interest in bipartisanship in general.
Democrats also warned of a health insurance crisis tied to the expiration of tax credits.
Stopgap Measures
Oct. 1 is the first day of the new fiscal year, and the normal appropriations process is stalled.
Stopgap measures to keep the government open for a matter of weeks were introduced by both parties Tuesday, but last-ditch votes in the Senate ended with no resolution.
Democrats warned of steep hikes in health insurance premiums because of soon-to-expire tax credits, and they complained the GOP was refusing to address that.
Republicans shot back that Democrats were in effect calling for enormous tax increases — not just for extending those credits established in 2021, but also for seeking to undo parts of laws that the Senate passed on simple-majority votes this year.
Power Dynamics
The impasse underscores the dynamics in Washington, where the GOP controls both chambers of Congress and the White House, but needs some Democrats’ votes in the Senate on most legislation.
That includes measures needing 60 Senate votes to avoid shutdowns. Republicans hold 53 seats.
A Republican bill to keep the government open for a matter of weeks — maintaining current funding — failed 55-45 on Tuesday.
This was called a “continuing resolution,” or CR, and was clean in the sense that it did not change funding or policy.
An earlier stopgap measure from Democrats failed as well.
That one sought big increases in spending, including preserving the Affordable Care Act credits.
U.S. Senate Republican Whip John Barrasso of Wyoming said the spending hikes in the Democrats’ CR were around $1 trillion over 10 years, and other Republicans put the figure even higher.
Previous Votes And Trump
Democrats are smarting from laws this year that required only simple-majority votes in the Senate, instead of a supermajority of 60.
These included the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and a rescissions package to claw back funds enacted into law.
Democrats are also upset with President Donald Trump’s unilateral rescission and impoundment moves to withdraw or withhold funds that were established in law.
Since averting a shutdown needs 60 Senate votes, Democrats have been demanding changes to the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and the rescissions package that required only a simple majority in the Senate.
They also object to Trump’s unilateral moves.
Affordable Care Act
A key sticking point has been Democrats’ insistence on extending tax credits in the Affordable Care Act marketplace that are due to expire at the end of the year.
Health insurers have said they intend to raise premiums significantly, largely as a result of the expiration, but Republicans note taxpayers would foot the bill to prolong the subsidies.
According to healthinsurance.org, a leading national brokerage, nearly 47,000 Wyomingites bought private insurance through the ACA marketplace in 2024 for coverage this year. That was a record high.
In the Cowboy State, Nov. 1 marks the start of open enrollment for coverage in 2026, according to navigator Enroll Wyoming.
Sean Barry can be reached at sean@cowboystatedaily.com.
