With a partial federal shutdown now entering its third week, Capitol Hill is marked by a sharpening tactical shift from House Republican leadership and mounting strain on federal operations. Speaker Mike Johnson is scheduled to hold a news conference with other House GOP leaders and House Administration Chair Bryan Steil, then join a separate call with the House Freedom Caucus, signaling a concerted effort to reconcile competing demands within the Republican conference ahead of the Senate’s return next week.

Republican leaders say they will alter their continuing resolution (CR) vote strategy once senators are back, an acknowledgment that the current approach has failed to produce the bipartisan agreement needed to reopen furloughed agencies. The planned recalibration reflects growing friction between House leadership and hardline conservatives who have pushed for spending reductions and policy riders, and members inclined to secure a short-term spending measure to resume government operations.

House Democrats, who have maintained unified opposition to deep cuts and certain policy conditions, called a virtual caucus for noon to coordinate responses and messaging. Their strategy, party officials say, is to emphasize the human and economic costs of the shutdown while framing Republican demands as the cause of prolonged disruption.

The policy and practical stakes are becoming clearer. Thousands of federal employees remain furloughed or working without pay, permitting and licensing processes and regulatory enforcement have slowed, and some public-facing services are curtailed. Local governments and private contractors also face ripple effects as federal payments and projects stall. Lawmakers across both parties have warned that extended shutdowns can undermine public trust in government and carry measurable costs for economic growth, though no comprehensive price tag has been released during this latest impasse.

Against the backdrop of the shutdown, the Senate demonstrated a contrasting capacity for bipartisanship by passing the annual defense authorization bill on Thursday, approving a roughly $925 billion measure by a 77-20 vote after agreeing to a package of 17 amendments. The bipartisan vote hands momentum to the Armed Services committees in both chambers, whose leaders say they are on track to begin negotiating a compromise bill by their goal of Thanksgiving.

That divergence — functional cooperation on national security and paralysis on routine government funding — is sharpening scrutiny of congressional priorities and capacity. Institutional players from committee chairs to appropriators now face compressed timelines: reconciling the defense bill, producing appropriations bills, and resolving the shutdown will all require trade-offs and cross-chamber negotiation amid internal factional pressures.

Political strategists warn the stalemate could have electoral repercussions, with both parties seeking to shape public narratives about responsibility for the impasse. For now, the immediate question is procedural: how House Republicans will reconfigure their CR strategy to attract enough support, and whether the Senate will accept or amend any proposal it receives when it resumes business.

Reporting contributions from Jordain Carney and Connor O’Brien.