GOP Braces for Shutdown
Senator Rick Scott urges GOP to prepare for potential government shutdown ahead of midterms
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Florida Sen. Rick Scott is pushing fellow Republicans to get ready for a possible government shutdown before the fall. Current federal funding expires on September 30, 2026, and Scott warned this week that Democrats are the ones who want to close the government down. He circulated a memo among Senate Republicans on June 23 urging the party to demand a "clean" stopgap bill tied to the SAVE America Act, according to Yahoo News.
The warning comes less than a year after a record-long 43-day shutdown that started October 1, 2025, which cost the U.S. economy $11 billion in lost activity, according to the Congressional Budget Office. With November 2026 midterm elections on the horizon, both parties are using the funding fight as a campaign weapon.
Scott Frames Shutdown Risk as Democratic Plot
Scott, who chairs the Senate Steering Committee, made his strategy clear on June 19 when he appeared on Fox Business and said a shutdown is "on the horizon" because of Democratic "roadblocks." Four days later, he circulated his memo telling Republicans to get ahead of the story. His core message: "We need to make it clear to all Americans that Democrats want to shut down government and Republicans want to fund it."
Scott's memo calls for tying any short-term funding bill to the SAVE America Act, which focuses on voter-verification rules. He also blocked a Democratic bill on June 17 that would have restricted a $1.776 billion executive branch fund, according to Senate Floor Proceedings. Critics say Scott is setting up a confrontation, not avoiding one.
Last Fall's 43-Day Shutdown Left Deep Economic Scars
The 2025 shutdown was the longest in U.S. history, running from October 1 to November 12. It was triggered by a deadlock over Affordable Care Act tax credits. The economic damage was severe. The U.S. Travel Association estimated $6.1 billion in losses to the travel sector alone. Americans took 88,000 fewer daily trips during the impasse, according to Tourism Economics.
The shutdown also created what analysts called a "data fog." The Bureau of Labor Statistics missed key jobs and inflation reports during the closure. That made it harder for the Federal Reserve to make interest rate decisions. Commonfund projected the shutdown cut real GDP growth by 1.5 percentage points in Q4 2025. Between 750,000 and 1.4 million federal workers were furloughed, according to J.P. Morgan.
Senate Math Makes a Deal Hard to Strike
Republicans hold a 53-45 Senate majority, according to Ballotpedia. But passing a full-year spending bill still requires 60 votes to clear the filibuster. That means GOP leaders need at least some Democratic support. Senate Majority Leader John Thune has pushed back on calls to end the filibuster, saying he knows "where the math is on this issue," according to Florida Politics.
Scott has recently softened his opposition to ending the filibuster, telling Newsmax that "all options" should be on the table if Democrats keep blocking spending bills. President Trump is expected to signal which faction he backs at a June 24 lunch with Senate Republicans. Democrats, led by Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, say they will not pass a DHS budget until ICE funding rules are rewritten.
A $39 Trillion Debt Clouds the Spending Fight
The political standoff plays out against a grim fiscal backdrop. U.S. national debt officially surpassed $39 trillion in April 2026, topping 100% of GDP for the first time, according to the Washington Times. Scott has made deficit reduction a centerpiece of his push, arguing that Democrats want to add to a "liberal trillion-dollar wish list" instead of passing a clean bill.
Business groups are watching closely. Mary Beth Sewald, CEO of the Vegas Chamber, urged leaders to "set aside differences and deliver a bipartisan solution," warning that another shutdown would hit tourism-heavy economies especially hard. Economists note that while some economic output bounces back after a shutdown ends, the lost consumer spending and missed government data create lasting damage that does not fully recover.
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