Despite their party's lopsided victories in Tuesday's elections, Senate Democrats remain torn over an exit strategy for what has become the longest partial government shutdown in history. As the shutdown reached its 36th day Wednesday, breaking a record set in President Donald Trump's first term, hopes for a resolution this week appeared to dim slightly. Even as they gloated over their election victories, Democrats were still trying to coalesce around an end game that stood a chance of winning bipartisan support. Some Democrats, emboldened by Tuesday's results, are resolved to oppose ending the shutdown until they secure a deal to extend enhanced health insurance subsidies that are set to expire at year's end. “This is one of the clearest messages on health care that voters have sent in many years,” said Senate Finance ranking member Ron Wyden, D-Ore., whose committee has jurisdiction over the health tax credits that are at the center of the shutdown standoff. But others appeared to be trying to strike a middle ground. A contingent of moderate Democrats has been working with some rank-and-file Republicans on a path out of the shutdown that could include a commitment for a vote on extending the health subsidies along with a stopgap funding measure and progress on full-year appropriations bills. More than a dozen senators involved in those talks have remained mum about specifics but are expressing more optimism in recent days. “All I’m going to tell you is the discussions are ongoing, and they've been very positive,” said Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H. She said she did not yet know if there could be an agreement achieved this week but said that it “would be helpful” if the president could participate in the bipartisan discussions. But Trump appeared to pour cold water on that idea at a breakfast with Senate Republicans. “I think they're kamikaze pilots,” Trump said of Democratic lawmakers. “I just got back from Japan. I talked about the kamikaze pilots. I think these guys are kamikaze — they'll take down the country if they have to.” Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., who has been talking with some GOP senators about the expiring tax credits, declined to say whether the promise of a vote on a bill to extend them would be enough for him to end the shutdown. “I'd say one good thing, because of the election, the president seems to notice that we have this issue," he added. Retiring Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich., who is also involved in the talks, suggested he was prepared to fight for a subsidies deal. “We got millions of people who are going to find that health care is unaffordable and are going to drop health care," he said. "That's a fight that we're going to continue as long as it takes." Sen. Mike Rounds, R-S.D., another key player, said the election has not changed the demands during bipartisan discussions surrounding the credits, describing the outcome as “baked in” to the ongoing talks. “The issue is, how do you find an outcome that we think would help the American people on the cost of their health care, while at the same time not having it be an impediment to getting government open again. That's the issue, and it's a matter of trust,” Rounds said. Calling on Trump Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., urged Trump and GOP leadership to come to the bargaining table to reopen government and address health care in a new letter Wednesday. "Thank you for your attention to this matter," the Democrats wrote, echoing one of Trump's favorite lines that he uses on social media. But Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., made clear again Wednesday he had no intention of negotiating a health care deal during the shutdown. “The stuff they want to talk about, we said before, we will do that, and the president's made it very clear he’s willing to sit down and have the conversation about how to fix Obamacare — but first we got to open up the government,” Thune said, referring to the Affordable Care Act. He also expressed optimism that rank-and-file members could reach a deal to reopen the government “in the course of the next few days,” pointing to cross-party talks about a potential package to extend government funding, along with enacting several full-year appropriations measures, and a vote for Democrats “on their Obamacare proposal.” But Democratic leaders and those in the party's progressive wing have said a vote alone is not enough to end the shutdown. “If it’s just a piece of legislation that passes the Senate, if it’s 50 votes or 60 votes, so what? Where does it go? Then it becomes just a meaningless gesture,” said Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions ranking member Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. “In my view, the Democrats have got to remain strong, continue to defend working families, not allowing premiums to double or triple.” Schumer, however, left himself a little wiggle room when asked whether a deal on subsidies, as Sanders sought, is a prerequisite for ending the shutdown. "Look, I'm not going to negotiate in public, but…we must address the health care needs of the American people," he said. "The Republicans [have] got to sit down and talk to us about it." Moving pieces Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., a participant in the bipartisan talks, emphasized that the conversations have been "constructive" as lawmakers explore all options for a path forward. Negotiators "can't take anything off the table," she emphasized, including potential guardrails on the Trump administration's efforts to rescind already appropriated funding. Sen. Katie Britt, an Alabama Republican appropriator who has also been involved in the talks, said Wednesday that negotiations to complete a compromise version of a package of three full-year spending bills (HR 3944) that the Senate had passed months ago — the Agriculture, Military Construction-VA and the Legislative Branch bills – are still ongoing. Some lawmakers have talked about trying to attach that three-bill package to a continuing resolution needed to reopen the government. "There are a couple of things that we're trying to wrap up in that, and I think once we're able to do that, hopefully we can get that to the floor," Britt said. "I think that's an excellent way to start to move forward in a productive way for the American people." However, not all lawmakers are certain that those full-year appropriations efforts will lead to an end to the shutdown. Aside the from the health care fight, the length of the continuing resolution and Democratic efforts to restrict mass firings and White House efforts to cancel congressionally approved funds remain points of contention. “I’m willing to come to the table and talk with everyone, so the real issue is where are the Republicans?” said Sen. Jacky Rosen, D-Nev. Ariel Cohen and Aidan Quigley contributed to this report.
