The House Prepares to Vote On Bill to End the Government Shutdown

Summary of The House Prepares to Vote On Bill to End the Government Shutdown

by The Wall Street Journal

13m•November 12, 2025
Listen to Episode

Overview of "The House Prepares to Vote On Bill to End the Government Shutdown" (WSJ — What's News, PM Edition)

This episode of The Wall Street Journal’s What's News (PM) covers the expected House vote to end the U.S. government shutdown, what’s in the stopgap spending bill, travel disruptions caused by the shutdown, a Federal Trade Commission probe into proxy-advisory firms, a growing split at the Federal Reserve over the inflation vs. labor-market threat, market moves, geopolitical headlines from Ukraine, and the end of U.S. penny production.

Key developments

  • The House is expected to vote on a bill tonight to reopen federal government operations after the shutdown.
  • The package extends funding for much of the federal government through January and provides full-year funding for:
    • the Agriculture Department,
    • Military Construction,
    • the Legislative Branch.
  • Several provisions and controversies are embedded in the bill (see details below).

What's in the spending bill

  • Federal employees:
    • Language guarantees reversal of federal layoffs carried out during the shutdown and ensures back pay for furloughed workers.
    • No mass firings until the end of January.
  • Security funding:
    • Additional hundreds of millions allocated to security for House and Senate members, Supreme Court justices, and other officials after recent threats/shootings.
  • Potential payouts:
    • A clause might authorize about $500,000 payouts to eight Republican senators whose phone records were probed in a DOJ investigation tied to post-2020-election inquiries. Both parties criticized the provision; House GOP Speaker Mike Johnson said Republicans will seek to repeal it next week.
  • Health-care subsidies:
    • The current House package contains no extension for health-care subsidies. Senate Majority Leader John Thune agreed to a mid-December vote on a subsidy-extension proposal only if Democrats can secure some Republican support; there’s no guarantee it reaches a House floor vote.

Travel impact and airline recovery

  • Disruptions persist while the FAA has ordered capacity reductions at 40 major airports; even after reopening, flights will be phased back rather than instantly restored.
  • Expected timeline: several days to ramp capacity back before holiday travel surges (Thanksgiving).
  • Disruption scale:
    • Average cancellation rate ~6% (data provider Cirium), but localized chaos: LaGuardia and Detroit experienced periods where over half of flights were delayed.
  • Financial impact on airlines:
    • Delta CEO Ed Bastian said carriers will feel a financial hit (mandated flight cuts and refunds) but not enough to wipe out profits.

FTC probe into proxy-advisory firms

  • The Federal Trade Commission is investigating Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) and Glass Lewis for potential antitrust violations related to how they advise clients on shareholder proposals, including climate-related issues.
  • Investigation is early-stage; both firms declined comment. The White House is also considering an executive order to curb proxy-advisors' influence.

Federal Reserve split and rate-cut uncertainty

  • The Fed shows an unusual internal split on whether inflation or the labor market is the bigger risk — creating uncertainty about timing and size of rate cuts.
  • Three central economic “mysteries” shaping Fed views:
    1. Will tariff-driven price increases be temporary or more persistent?
    2. Is slowing job growth due to weaker demand or constrained labor supply?
    3. How close are interest rates to a neutral “sweet spot” that neither stimulates nor restricts growth?
  • Market view: traders still see a December rate cut as more likely than not, but the probability fell after Chair Powell’s Oct. 29 remarks and the Fed’s internal divergence.

Markets and global headlines

  • Markets: Dow reportedly closed above 48,000 for the first time (episode note), S&P ticked up, Nasdaq down ~0.3% with weakness in Palantir, Oracle, Meta, and Tesla.
  • Ukraine: the justice minister was suspended and the energy minister resigned amid a corruption probe in the energy sector. The investigation threatens domestic and international support for President Zelensky as Russia presses a new battlefield offensive.

End of the U.S. penny

  • The U.S. Mint produced its last penny in Philadelphia after 232 years, following a presidential order to end penny production.
  • Production inefficiency: each penny cost the government 3.7 cents to make. Estimated annual savings: $56 million.
  • Existing pennies (~300 billion in circulation) remain legal tender.

Notable quotes & soundbites

  • “There’ll be no more mass firings until the end of January” — describing the bill’s protections for federal workers.
  • WSJ on the Fed: “It’s unusual that you see this kind of fracturing of the Fed,” highlighting the unusual nature of the split over policy risks.

Takeaways & recommended actions

  • Expect the House vote to likely reopen the government; watch for implementation delays (especially in aviation) as agencies phase back operations.
  • Federal workers should receive back pay and rehiring protections per the bill’s language.
  • Investors should factor in Fed uncertainty: economic data (inflation, jobs reports, tariffs) will be key inputs for rate-expectation shifts before December.
  • Corporate governance watchers and public companies should monitor the FTC probe and possible White House action affecting proxy advisory influence.
  • Travelers should expect several days of phased recovery and keep flexible plans and ticket options in mind.

Where to find more

  • WSJ’s What's News feed for this episode.
  • WSJ’s follow-up reporting on the spending bill, FTC probe, Fed commentary, and the alternative economic indicator episode on copper.