WASHINGTON, DC: House Speaker Mike Johnson suggested on Saturday, November 1, that progress on ending the month-long government shutdown may not come until after election day.

“We do have a sense that something may change next week. Of course, there’s a big election on Tuesday,” Johnson said during a virtual appearance at the Republican Jewish Coalition’s leadership summit.

“The conventional wisdom on the Hill right now is that they’re waiting for that to pass because they can’t take the wrath of their radical, frankly antisemitic, socialist, Marxist base if they fold too soon,” he added.

Mike Johnson says Democrats are using the shutdown as leverage

Johnson argued that Democrats believe ending the shutdown ahead of key state and local elections in New Jersey, Virginia, and New York City could hurt their voter turnout.

Democrats, however, have in turn placed the blame squarely on Republicans and President Donald Trump.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said earlier this week that “it’s time for Republicans to start getting serious about ending this shutdown” as millions of Americans face delays in receiving federal benefits.

Severe air traffic controller shortages

Meanwhile, the effects of the shutdown are spreading across the US aviation system.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said on Friday that nearly half of the nation’s 30 busiest airports are facing air traffic controller shortages, resulting in nationwide flight delays and cancellations.

New York was reportedly among the hardest-hit regions, with 80% of air traffic controllers out of service.

At least 35 FAA facilities, including major airports in New York, Austin, Newark, Phoenix, Washington, Nashville, Dallas, and Denver, reported staffing problems.

The FAA said the system avoided even greater chaos because Halloween air travel was down about 20% from typical Friday volumes.

Still, more than 5,600 flights were delayed and about 500 canceled on Friday alone, according to the tracking site FlightAware.

At New York’s LaGuardia Airport, half of all flights were delayed and 12% canceled, with average delays of more than two hours. On the other hand, Reagan National Airport in Washington saw one in four flights delayed.

Controllers and airlines urge end to shutdown

Roughly 13,000 air traffic controllers and 50,000 Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers have now gone over a month without pay.

“After 31 days without pay, air traffic controllers are under immense stress and fatigue. The shutdown must end so that these controllers receive the pay they’ve earned and travelers can avoid further disruptions,” the FAA warned in a statement.

Airlines echoed that call with Delta, United, Southwest, and American Airlines joining the National Air Traffic Controllers Association in urging Congress to pass a short-term funding bill to reopen the government.