WASHINGTON — California Sens. Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff say they will vote with most Democrats against a temporary measure to fund the government, paving the way for a possible government shutdown by the end of the week.
“It gives Donald Trump six months to continue wrecking the government,” Schiff said in a video posted on X. “That’s not going to fly. What we should do is something short-term, that will allow members of Congress to agree on setting regular funding levels for every part of the government — and to insist that they be observed by the president.”
The Senate must vote on a continuing resolution that the House of Representatives narrowly passed this week on a mostly partisan basis — only one Democrat supported the measure and one Republican voted against it — to fund the government past its Friday deadline. With an extraordinarily small majority, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) relied on President Trump to persuade Republicans to pass the legislation, which would fund the government through September while Congress negotiates its broader budget.
The measure then moved to the Senate, where Republicans need Democrats’ help to reach the 60-vote threshold necessary for it to pass without a filibuster. Padilla and Schiff indicated they will not lend Republicans a hand.
The California senators and other Democrats maintain that supporting the resolution would allow Trump and his advisor Elon Musk, who heads the so-called Department of Government Efficiency, to continue their cutting spree of the federal government. Earlier this week, the Trump administration laid off about half of the Department of Education’s roughly 4,000 staff members.
“We cannot cede more power to Trump and Elon Musk,” Padilla said in a statement on X on Wednesday. “The House Republican spending bill is a non-starter — it completely shortchanges California on disaster relief in the wake of the devastating LA County fires.”
The spending bill includes $22.5 billion for the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s disaster relief fund, which the agency draws from in its response to the L.A. County wildfires.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said in a statement Wednesday that Senate Democrats were “unified on a clean 30-day [continuing resolution] that will keep the government open and give Congress time to negotiate bipartisan legislation that can pass.” But a short-term funding deal, which the California senators support, would fail to pass the Republican-controlled chamber.
The ramifications of a government shutdown could be politically devastating for Democrats; the party is already struggling to determine a unified response to the Republican stronghold in Congress and the White House. Republican leaders have already indicated they will pin a shutdown on Democrats, decrying the hypocrisy of pushing toward a government shutdown while advocating against Musk’s cuts to the government.
“If they shut down, it’s not the Republicans’ fault,” Trump said to reporters Thursday.
But Democrats point the finger back at Republican leadership.
“Remember, Republicans are in control of the White House, the House and the Senate,” said Rep. Jennifer McClellan (D-Va.). “If the government shuts down, it’s because they want it to — not us.”
