Speaker Johnson Keeps House Away Amid Shutdown Standoff/ Newslooks/ WASHINGTON/ J. Mansour/ Morning Edition/ House Speaker Mike Johnson has kept the chamber recessed for three weeks amid a growing government shutdown crisis. While the House passed a GOP-backed funding bill, the Senate has stalled, and services remain suspended. Critics accuse Johnson of avoiding responsibility while tensions grow across both parties.
Speaker Johnson and the Government Shutdown Quick Looks
- House remains recessed as shutdown nears third week
- Speaker Johnson blames Senate for failing to pass House bill
- House approved a funding bill, then left Washington
- Senate Democrats refuse to vote without health care subsidies
- Special election winner Adelita Grijalva still not sworn in
- Shutdown leaves military unpaid, services halted nationwide
- Legal battles loom over Epstein file disclosure effort
- GOP faces internal division over healthcare funding and shutdown
- Johnson offers no date for House to return to session
- National frustration mounts as gridlock continues
Deep Look
Speaker Johnson Keeps House Away as Government Shutdown Drags Into Third Week
WASHINGTON — Oct. 10, 2025 — House Speaker Mike Johnson is presiding over a chamber that remains eerily silent.
With the federal government partially shut down for nearly three weeks, Johnson has yet to call the House back into session, holding firm to a Republican strategy that passed a funding bill and left Washington—putting the burden, he says, squarely on the Senate.
“The House did its job,” Johnson said during a press briefing Thursday.
“There’s nothing left to negotiate. The ball is in the Senate’s court.”
But with military members going unpaid, essential government services suspended, and a newly elected representative still waiting to be sworn in, Johnson is facing rising criticism from both Democrats and within his own party. The strategy that once seemed politically savvy—jamming the Senate by passing a House bill and leaving town—has instead led to a growing crisis.
A House in Recess — and in Crisis
The House has not held a formal working session since it passed a government funding bill and adjourned three weeks ago. That absence is now testing Johnson’s leadership, his ability to control a fractious GOP majority, and his legacy as speaker during one of the most critical fiscal standoffs in recent history.
Returning lawmakers to Washington would invite chaotic infighting and highlight divisions among House Republicans. But keeping them away invites accusations that Congress is abandoning its duty while Americans suffer the shutdown’s consequences.
“They’re on vacation,” said House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, referring to the Republican majority.
“While the government is closed, the House is closed — and Speaker Johnson is missing in action.”
Senate Stalemate Over Health Care
The House-passed bill has failed to clear the Senate, where Democrats are holding out for a deal that includes health care subsidies due to expire at year’s end.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) has brought the House bill up multiple times, trying to gather enough votes, but Democrats remain united in their refusal to support it without action on health care.
Republican Senators are now working behind closed doors on potential compromise proposals, including:
- A two-year extension of health care subsidies (Sen. Lisa Murkowski)
- Reform-linked extension plans (Sen. Mike Rounds)
- A six-point bipartisan plan (Sen. Susan Collins)
“We’re making progress,” said Sen. Markwayne Mullin, a close Trump ally.
“I think we’re kind of starting to get to a place.”
Grijalva Left in Limbo
Adding to the unusual circumstances, Adelita Grijalva, a Democrat who won a special election to replace her late father Rep. Raul Grijalva, has not been sworn in.
Though she is cleared to take office, Johnson has refused to seat her, offering conflicting justifications — at times citing the shutdown, other times stating she can be sworn in “whenever she wants.”
Grijalva’s addition to the House would further narrow Johnson’s razor-thin majority and, notably, would provide the final signature needed to force a vote on legislation to release Jeffrey Epstein-related government files — a measure Democrats support and Republicans have avoided.
“I just want to get to work,” Grijalva told local reporters.
Viral Moments, Empty Halls
In a Capitol mostly devoid of legislators, some lawmakers have turned to social media stunts to draw attention to the shutdown. GOP Rep. Mike Lawler filmed a hallway confrontation with Jeffries, while Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene has criticized her own party’s leadership for ignoring the need to act on health care subsidies.
Others are offering Capitol tours to constituents as legislative work grinds to a halt.
Meanwhile, the image of a speaker leading a silent House during a national crisis is raising alarm. The last time the chamber remained inactive for so long was during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, when Speaker Nancy Pelosi implemented remote voting procedures.
No such innovation has been introduced now.
Johnson Stays Defiant
At Thursday’s press conference, Johnson doubled down on his stance, reiterating that the House has fulfilled its obligation.
“The reason the House isn’t here is because they turned the lights off,” he said, referencing the Senate.
“I’m trying to muster every ounce of Christian charity that I can, but this is outrageous.”
He refused to say if or when he would call the House back into session.
“We’ll keep you posted,” Johnson said. “And let’s pray this ends soon.”
With the 2026 election cycle already beginning to heat up, the Speaker’s shutdown strategy could define his political career. Whether it ends in a breakthrough or backfires will depend on how long he keeps the House in limbo — and how the public responds.
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