MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
Today is day six of the government shutdown. Senators are reconvening today to vote on temporarily funding the government, but both parties seem pretty dug in on their positions at the moment. NPR White House correspondent Deepa Shivaram is with us to talk it through. Good morning, Deepa.
DEEPA SHIVARAM, BYLINE: Hi, Michel.
MARTIN: So any progress between the two parties over the weekend?
SHIVARAM: Pretty much no. There's been no movement or progress on ending this government shutdown. Republicans in the House have already passed a measure that would temporarily fund the government until November 21, but things are held up in the Senate. And that's because Democrats are asking for an extension of health care tax credits to be included in this bill that would fund the government. And these tax credits are set to expire at the end of this year, in 2025. And they're these credits that help people with health insurance through the Affordable Care Act because it kind of offsets costs of the premiums of those health care plans. And these tax credits were boosted during the pandemic. It's helped make health care insurance more affordable, and without these credits, premiums on average would go up 114% for consumers. And that number is according to KFF, a nonpartisan health research group.
MARTIN: OK. On average, they'd go up 114%. OK. So what are Republicans saying in response to these Democrats' demands?
SHIVARAM: Well, Republicans are saying that right now the priority is to fund the government. And once that happens, then Congress can turn to these health care tax credits that are about to expire. Though I will say, you know, there's no guarantee that there's enough support to extend those credits. In the meantime, there's this messaging war going on. Republicans are saying that Democrats are holding up the vote on reopening the government. The White House even has a timer on their website for how long they say Democrats have shut down the government. Democrats, on the other side, say that Republicans are the ones holding it up because they refuse to negotiate.
MARTIN: And what about the president? What has he had to say about all this?
SHIVARAM: So Trump was in Norfolk, Virginia, yesterday for a speech that was marking the 250th anniversary of the Navy. And he briefly mentioned the shutdown when talking about paying service members because active-duty service members are not getting paid right now under the government shutdown, but they will get their money back when the shutdown is over. And later in the day, Trump also said of Democrats, quote, "it's their shutdown, not our shutdown."
MARTIN: The administration is also talking about laying off government workers - I guess firing them - because of the shutdown.
SHIVARAM: Yeah.
MARTIN: Has the White House shared any more details about this?
SHIVARAM: No, but yesterday, Trump said, like, the firing of federal employees was, quote, "taking place right now." But details are still unclear. On Friday, I was at the White House in the briefing room, and White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that the Office of Management and Budget was meeting with agencies to determine where some cuts could happen. What is interesting, though, is how the president has been openly saying that he wants to target, quote, "Democrat agencies" in these potential cuts. And in addition, the administration has been canceling these funds that are destined for projects in blue states.
MARTIN: And as we said, the Senate reconvenes today. Any idea what we can expect to see on the Hill?
SHIVARAM: There hasn't been any movement towards any kind of agreement or common ground over the weekend. So while the Senate is getting together today, Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson isn't convening the House. He says that he won't call in his own members until Senate Democrats agree to reopen the government.
MARTIN: That is NPR's Deepa Shivaram. Deepa, thank you.
SHIVARAM: Thanks. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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