Funding bill heads to House but government shutdown could impact air travel for months

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer departs the US Capitol on Monday, following the Senate vote on a funding measure to end the government shutdown.

House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries signaled support for Sen. Chuck Schumer as the Senate minority leader faces criticism after a number of centrist Senate Democrats voted with Republicans to approve a funding measure for reopening the government.

When asked by CNN’s Wolf Blitzer on “The Situation Room” if Schumer should be replaced, Jeffries said:

The majority of Democrats in Congress are demanding that a funding measure guarantee an extension of enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies, which help millions of Americans afford insurance.

Jeffries said “it’s unfortunate” that eight lawmakers voted against their caucus.

“They’re going to have to explain themselves. This fight continues,” Jeffries said.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries speaks with CNN on Tuesday.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries reiterated to CNN’s Wolf Blitzer that Democrats will “strongly oppose any legislation that does not decisively address the Republican health care crisis.”

The Democrat from New York said he expects the House to vote on the funding measure to reopen the federal government tomorrow after it passed in the Senate last night. Eight members of the Senate Democratic caucus joined Republicans in advancing the legislation, which doesn’t secure the party’s demand of extending expiring Affordable Care Act subsidies.

“We want to reopen the government. We’ll continue to stand by our hardworking federal employees and civil servants. But we have a responsibility to make sure that we extend the Affordable Care Act tax credits so that tens of millions of Americans don’t experience dramatically increased health care costs that’s going to prevent them from being able to see a doctor when they need one,” Jeffries said on CNN’s “The Situation Room.”

The Democratic leader added that the next few weeks are going to be critical as the ACA subsidies are set to expire on December 31.

“Dozens of House Republicans have been claiming over the last few weeks that they know that is something that needs to be addressed. And now we’re going to have to see some action,” Jeffries said.

House Speaker Mike Johnson walks to the podium ahead of his remarks to reporters, on Monday.

A small band of Senate Democrats joined Republicans and passed a stopgap funding bill in a 60-40 vote late last night — a key step forward in ending the longest government shutdown in US history.

Yesterday’s critical vote capped a frenzied few days of negotiations between Senate centrists, GOP leaders and the White House.

If you’re just joining us, here’s where things stand and what to expect next:

Travelers walk through Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport in Baltimore on Monday.

While the government shutdown may soon be in the rearview mirror, it could impact air travel for months, and experts say the window for sufficient recovery before Thanksgiving is narrow.

Essential FAA employees who have worked during the shutdown will not immediately receive back pay, and some may choose not to return to work right away.

Some air traffic controllers will never return to their jobs and are retiring or quitting to find work where they will not be subject to government shutdowns.

If controllers come back to the job, pilot and aviation consultant Kit Darby thinks it might take airlines a “week or two” to snap back.

“If we can’t get it done this week (to end the shutdown), we’re starting to get to the point where it won’t be fully recovered by Thanksgiving,” Darby said.

Henry Harteveldt, president of Atmosphere Research Group, agreed. He said that if the shutdown is resolved no later than the end of this week or even this coming weekend, airlines should have enough time to reassemble their schedules and get flights operating at normal levels by Thanksgiving.

But if the shutdown has not been resolved at the end of this week, there is a big risk that Thanksgiving travel could be disrupted, he said.

Read more about the staffing shortage here.

The US Supreme Court building in Washington, DC, on October 2.

The Supreme Court is facing a close-to-midnight deadline today to resolve an emergency appeal over the full payment of food stamp benefits for millions of Americans, even as Congress advances a deal that would reopen the federal government and fully fund the SNAP program.

How we got here: Despite a series of lower court orders, there is one only order – from Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson – that is controlling what happens with food stamps. On late Friday, Jackson entered what’s known as “administrative stay” that effectively sided with President Donald Trump and temporarily allowed the government to withhold full SNAP benefits.

Jackson’s order will lift at 11:54pm ET on Tuesday. If that happens, a lower court order would take effect, and Trump would be required to spend an additional $4 billion on the food program.

Given that Congress is moving toward a resolution of the shutdown, a more likely scenario is that the Supreme Court – either Jackson or a majority of justices – would extend the administrative stay. That would allow the court to avoid ruling directly on Trump’s request and if the House passes the legislation to reopen the government, the legal case before the Supreme Court would almost certainly be dismissed as moot.

The nonprofit groups challenging the administration urged the Supreme Court in written arguments Tuesday morning to let the administrative stay expire and force the administration to fully fund food stamps now – rather than wait for the House to vote on the agreement.

People stand at Newark Airport in Newark, New Jersey, on Tuesday.

Travelers at Newark Liberty International Airport were cautiously optimistic early Tuesday morning, with many of them telling CNN their travel plans had yet to be significantly disrupted by the government shutdown and related flight reductions.

April Taylor, who was on her way to Texas, told CNN she was notified about potential disruptions through her airline’s app. Even though her original flight was not yet cancelled, she used the opportunity and flexibility airlines are providing to move up her travel and avoid potential issues later in the day.

Many US airlines, including Delta and United, are waiving fees for customers who want to change or cancel their plans because of shutdown cuts.

“That was very helpful. They let us move it to an earlier flight, so we feel like so far everything’s saying it’s on time. We’re hopeful,” Taylor said.

Even as some travelers were expecting to leave on their Tuesday flights without issue, some acknowledged their return flight could be subject to cancellation.

“Hopefully I’ll get out to LA today, and then hopefully I’ll get back on Thursday,” Tom Westdyk told CNN. “So, so far so good. I think the coast-to-coast flights haven’t been impacted as much, so I’ll keep my fingers crossed.”

At Newark Airport, 27 flights scheduled to fly out had been cancelled as of 9:20 a.m. ET Tuesday, according to the flight tracking site FlightAware, which monitors flight disruptions for all reasons. Incoming flights saw 35 cancellations.

Travelers heading to international destinations, including Europe and Turks and Caicos, reported no major issues.

Security and check-in lines appeared to be flowing normally inside Newark Airport’s Terminal A, even as metal gates across two sections of the security area remained lowered.

Those heading to warmer destinations — as a cold front impacts the East Coast — were anxious to get away and dismissed the possibility their return flight could be compromised as flight cancellations are scaled up through the week.

“If we get stuck there, we’re in Key West, so we’ll stay for a couple days,” Sue Moricco told CNN. “That’s a good place to be stuck at.”

Planes sit at gates at LaGuardia Airport in the Queens borough of New York, on November 9.

Until a deal to end the federal government shutdown is officially inked, airlines must continue to follow the Federal Aviation Administration’s emergency order to incrementally reduce flight capacity at 40 major US airports, up to 10%.

The order calls for airlines to cancel flights seven days before they are scheduled to fly, and once they are canceled and passengers are informed, they can’t easily be reinstated.

When the shutdown ends and controllers come back to the job, pilot and aviation consultant Kit Darby tells CNN it might take airlines a “week or two” to snap back.

A store in New York displays a sign accepting Electronic Benefits Transfer cards for SNAP purchases for groceries on October 30.

Millions of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP recipients have been suffering whiplash since the start of the shutdown, with the US Department of Agriculture issuing four different guidance memos to states about distributing at least some benefits, as well as the two lawsuits that aim to force the agency to issue payments working their way through multiple levels of the US courts system.

A federal judge in Rhode Island first ordered USDA to provide at least partial food stamp benefits but last week expanded his ruling to require the agency to pay full benefits. The Supreme Court on Friday evening temporarily paused the judge’s order to require full payments to be distributed.

Here’s what some recipients have to say about the legal back-and-forth:

Read more about their stories here.

American Airlines planes line up on the tarmac at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington, Virginia, on Sunday.

As FAA’s emergency order for today calls on airlines to reduce flight operations by six percent at 40 selected airports, the country’s major carriers have preemptively canceled flights to meet the order’s requirements.

Here’s what some major airlines have planned:

The cancellations come as air traffic controllers miss another day of work today, in larger numbers, having missed their second full paycheck since the lapse of government funding yesterday.

A sign which says "Will Vector for Food" is displayed from a window in the control tower at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport on Monday.

Sara Nelson, the international president of the Association of Flight Attendants said President Donald Trump’s demands that all air traffic controllers “get back to work, NOW” or face penalties, are “disgraceful” and demanded a rescission of those comments.

“Not only is it disgraceful, … it also shows that the President does not understand where Americans are living paycheck to paycheck these days and stressed to the max,” Nelson told CNN’s Kate Bolduan on CNN News Central.

Nelson said instead, “we should all be expressing empathy and thank you,” toward air traffic controllers, “who have worked through this miraculously, without getting paid.”

Mary Becker speaks with CNN affiliate KXTV.

As the government shutdown continues to disrupt the airline industry, one Sacramento International Airport worker and mother of a 9-month-old says she’s barely making ends meet without pay.

“I’ve missed two paychecks now,” Mary Becker told CNN affiliate KXTV. She shows up to work every day, even as she struggles to care for her daughter, Alice, and keep up with mounting bills.

“We’ve had to ask for help when buying diapers and formula, because formula is very expensive — especially since she has a dairy allergy, so we have to get goat milk formula,” Becker said.

Becker said Alice recently became ill, forcing her to ask the pediatrician’s office to delay payment. “I can’t afford the $50 copay right now,” she added, noting that Alice had to see the doctor four times in two weeks after catching hand, foot and mouth disease.

Becker, who has worked for the Transportation Security Administration for nine years, has experienced two government shutdowns, but says this one feels especially difficult as a single mother.

“It definitely lowers morale,” she said. “Before you miss the first paycheck, you can pretend it’s not happening. But the moment you miss that paycheck, suddenly it’s very real that we’re not getting paid — and we’re still having to come to work.”

President Donald Trump talks to reporters as he departs the White House on October 24.

It’s Veterans Day, and President Donald Trump will be going to Arlington National Cemetery this morning.

An aircraft controller works in the tower at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington, Virginia, on Friday.

Monday was the worst day for air traffic control staffing that wasn’t a Friday, Saturday or Sunday since the start of the government shutdown, according to a CNN analysis of Federal Aviation Administration operations plans.

Due to the federal holiday today, the air traffic controller pay date was moved to yesterday. Controllers would have been paid then if the government was open.

Due to the federal holiday today, the air traffic controller pay date was moved forward to Monday Nov. 10. Controllers would have been paid yesterday, if the government was open.

There were 40 reports of “staffing triggers” yesterday at FAA facilities, from Orlando to Anchorage.

A “staffing trigger” is when air traffic controllers alter operations to keep the airspace safe with fewer people working. These steps can include rerouting planes or delaying flights when there are not enough controllers to handle the normal workload.

The worst overall days for staffing since the start of the shutdown were Saturday with 63 problems, Sunday with 51 and Halloween, which was a Friday, with 46.

There have been 636 reports of short staffing since October 1, more than six times as many as were reported on the same dates last year.

For context: Control towers at Chicago’s O’Hare, Dallas Fort Worth, Los Angeles, Nashville, Phoenix, and San Diego reported staffing problems Monday.

Terminal Radar Approach Control facilities (TRACONs) in Anchorage, Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Detroit, Houston, Las Vegas, New York, Newark, Orlando, Phoenix and Southern California were also short-staffed.

Air Route Traffic Control Centers, which control flights en route at high altitude, were without their normal complement of controllers Monday in Albuquerque, Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Oakland, Washington, DC, and Jacksonville.

Travelers walk past a flight information board at the Miami International Airport on Monday.

Dozens of flights at Miami International Airport were canceled under FAA-mandated flight reductions, leaving travelers stranded and anxious like thousands nationwide.

Passengers Judith and Thomas Miadock, who arrived in Miami on Monday after a three-week cruise, found out their flight home to Cleveland had been canceled three times.

“So now, they have us booked for tomorrow, which means we have to stay here today. Rent a room again for the third night,” Thomas Miadock told CNN affiliate WFOR.

Many travelers blamed the government shutdown for staffing shortages that led to the cancellations.

Verette Johnson, whose flight was canceled on Monday, told WFOR she was irritated by the delay.

“But my complaint is little compared to everybody else’s,” she added.