For years, Washington has treated government shutdowns like some kind of reckless political game—except the dice get rolled with America’s paycheck, airports, and national security on the table.
Now, a rare bipartisan pairing—Sen. James Lankford and Sen. Maggie Hassan are pushing back hard against the dysfunction, arguing what millions of Americans have been thinking for years: the people should not be the ones held hostage every time Congress can’t do its basic job.
Shutdowns, they warn, are not some abstract Washington “disagreement.” They are real-world chaos. Past standoffs have cost the U.S. economy more than $11 billion and left travelers staring down airport security lines stretching for hours when TSA funding dries up. Air traffic controllers—those essential professionals keeping planes from becoming disasters in the sky—have been forced to work without pay. That’s not politics. That’s negligence dressed up as process.
Veterans waiting on benefits, seniors depending on federal support, and small business owners seeking help from the Small Business Administration have all been caught in the crossfire when Washington hits the brakes. Even SNAP benefits—the lifeline for struggling families—have been threatened in past shutdown fights. And somehow, this has been allowed to repeat again and again.
The senators’ message is blunt: enough is enough.
Government shutdowns are dumb. They hurt families, federal workers, and our economy.
My Prevent Government Shutdowns Act would:
✅Keep federal workers paid
✅ Keep the government funded
✅ Keep Congress in session 7 days a week. No CODELs, No Travel. Voting ONLY on…— Sen. James Lankford (@SenatorLankford) June 2, 2026
Their proposal, the “Prevent Government Shutdowns Act of 2026,” would essentially end the hostage-style budgeting wars. If Congress fails to pass funding bills on time, an automatic continuing resolution would keep the government running at existing levels. Translation: no more panic, no more chaos, no more political brinkmanship dragging the country through the mud.
But here’s the twist—this time, Congress would feel the pressure too.
Under the plan, lawmakers and their staff wouldn’t get to simply leave town and let the mess fester. They’d be required to stay in Washington, voting every day of the week until they finish the job. No recess, no escape hatch, no shrugging and waiting for public outrage to pass. Just basic accountability—the kind every working American already lives with.
The idea is simple, almost painfully so: if Congress can’t finish its work, it shouldn’t be the American people paying the price while lawmakers posture for cable news and social media clips.
For the past decade, Americans have watched a wasteful Washington drama unfold each year: government shutdowns that threaten our economy, jeopardize our security and hurt families all across our country. That’s why @SenatorHassan and I introduced our Prevent Government Shutdowns…
— Sen. James Lankford (@SenatorLankford) June 4, 2026
Both senators admit they don’t agree on everything politically—hardly a shock in today’s Senate circus—but on this, they’re aligned. Shutdowns, they argue, are not a strategy. They are a failure state. And the United States, the world’s largest economy, shouldn’t be routinely held hostage by its own legislature’s inability to meet deadlines.
The bill previously gained bipartisan traction but narrowly fell short by just a handful of votes. Since then, America has endured even longer shutdown chaos, adding urgency to a reform that supporters say is long overdue.
