U.S. Rep. Arrington expresses frustration over government shutdown. Here's what he said

"It's not going well. It's going to get worse."

By Mateo Rosiles
October 16, 2025
AS SEEN IN THE LUBBOCK AVALANCHE-JOURNAL

Several votes in the U.S. Senate have come and failed, leaving Americans uncertain about the future of their federal government as it remains shut down.

This shutdown is not only frustrating Americans, but also those who represent them in Congress — especially the chairman of the U.S. House Budget Committee.

U.S. Rep. Jodey Arrington, R-Texas, expressed his frustration about why the Senate, particularly Senate Democratic leadership, isn't passing the House's "clean" Continuing Resolution (CR).

For context, Congress passes a CR to fund the government at the same level as last year to give lawmakers time to hammer out the final details of the final government funding bill, which is voted on in late November.

Mateo Rosiles/Avalanche-Journal

The counteroffer that was proposed by Democrats revolves around healthcare reform, including Affordable Care Act tax credits — which are to sunset in December — that Democrats want to extend before open enrollment begins in November.

Arrington said those subsidies would extend $400 billion COVID-era policy that expands Obamacare — which Arrington calls an already “failed” program.

"When these expire, it will go back to the original Obamacare subsidies, which, on average, across the board, from 100% poverty to 400% poverty subsidize 90% of their premiums," Arrington said. "At the lower end, it's 98% so the people who are at the 100 to 130% poverty level, they get 98% of their premiums paid for."

While in previous government shutdowns, both parties would come together to hammer out a bipartisan deal, this time, no such thing is happening.

Arrington said Senate Minority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer is holding the government "hostage" for his own political gains. The Avalanche-Journal has reached out to Schumer's team for comment, but has received none.

"These ridiculous demands of $1.5 trillion repealing all these things, including the guardrails against illegals getting free health care," Arrington said. "It's not going well. It's going to get worse, and it's going to have long-term repercussions for the Democrat party."

The ramifications of the government shutdown are already being felt here in West Texas.

Arrington said that Women, Infants and Children programs are being impacted, as well as agricultural loans and subsidies and veterans programs, including burial services provided by the VA.

"It's that's happening right now. How long can people sustain it?" Arrington said. "If you're a vulnerable person, you're already on the bleeding edge of survival. So, I can't imagine the anxiety in the lives of some of these families that depend on these programs and support."

Are the plans to prevent this from happening again?

While this government shutdown — at the time of reporting — is not the longest government shutdown, unlike the 35-day one in 2018, U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Louisiana, issued a warning that it might become it if things don't improve.

However, Arrington, along with a Senate colleague in Oklahoma, is working on a bill to prevent government shutdowns from dragging on.

Mateo Rosiles/Avalanche-Journal

"A bill that I've coined, 'no budget, no recess,'" Arrington said. "If we stopped paying members of Congress, if we stopped allowing members of Congress to recess and have them stay in Washington as long as it takes to finish the job, this thing would have been over in two days."

However, until then, the government remains shut down with no end in sight, with several initiatives from Arrington's initiative pertaining to the Farm Bill and early cancer detection measures remaining in limbo