A key Senate Democratic negotiator indicated on Thursday that a deal to end the shutdown soon is unlikely.
“No, I don’t think so,” Sen. Gary Peters (D-Mich.), a prominent figure in the shutdown talks, told reporters when asked if lawmakers are close to ending the shutdown. “We have to make sure we have a deal that we can get broad support for.”
The Michigan Democrat also said Speaker Mike Johnson’s (R-La.) refusal to guarantee a vote to extend Affordable Care Act enhanced subsidies “a significant problem.”
Asked at a press conference Thursday morning if he could assure Democrats in the House that they would get a vote on extending the subsidies, Johnson said, “No, because we did our job, and I’m not part of the negotiation.”
Democrats have demanded an extension of the subsidies as a condition of reopening the government.
In recent days, a group of centrists has begun discussing an off-ramp that would include a guaranteed vote on the measure, but some Democrats have said they would need assurances about a vote in the House as well.
At the same time, Tuesday night’s election results seemed to harden Democrats’ resolve to stick to their shutdown strategy.
Democrats are meeting Thursday afternoon to discuss a potential deal, but many Democrats say they need bigger concessions from Republicans to support it.
