Washington, D.C. – Today, on Day 27 of the Schumer Shutdown, Senator Mullin issued a warning to Oklahomans bracing for the November 1^st, 2025, cliff which is, “set to put many U.S. households at risk of new hardship” as the shutdown lingers.

If Congress fails to pass a government funding bill by Saturday, popular programs that provide nutrition and food assistance, early childhood education, and the Essential Air Service will likely run out of funds. Thousands of federal employees in Oklahoma, including members of the military, are also on track to miss full paychecks this week.

Notably, this morning, NBC News reported that the largest federal workers union representing 820,000 federal employees called, “for lawmakers to pass a short-term spending measure to end the government shutdown immediately,urging Democrats to abandon their current position and join Republicans in supporting a stopgap solution.”

Senators Mullin and Lankford have supported the clean, short-term spending measure a dozen times since the Schumer Shutdown began on October 1^st. So far, the bill has earned support from 52 Republicans, and 3 Senate Democrats. It takes 60 votes to pass.

“In true Oklahoma fashion, small businesses and eager residents have quickly stepped up to aid their neighbors as the Schumer Shutdown drags on,” said Senator Mullin. “I’m proud to see so many living the Oklahoma Standard, but it shouldn’t have to be this way. I’ve voted twelve times to end the Schumer Shutdown, fund SNAP, and restore pay for federal workers, including law enforcement, air traffic controllers, and active-duty military. We only need 5 more Senate Democrats to join the bipartisan effort to end this pain on American families. I’m very concerned about the consequences of a Schumer Shutdown lasting beyond November 1^st.”

Oklahomans are facing a cliff on November 1^st:

• If Congress does not end to the Schumer Shutdown before Saturday, Nov 1^st, 2025, food assistance (SNAP) for low-income families will start to run out. 
• Federal funding will stop for early childhood education programs at Head Start, which support 800,000 children under the age of six. 
• While President Trump has done his best to minimize hardship on Americans, including supplementing the WIC nutrition assistance program with emergency cash for low-income mothers and babies— those funds will dry up on Saturday if nothing changes.
• U.S. military families are also on track to miss a paycheck this Friday 10/31, while many civilian employees will miss full paychecks on Tuesday and Thursday this week.

Background:

• On Wednesday, October 1, 2025, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Senate Democrats shut down the federal government after refusing to support a clean 7-week funding bill to keep the lights on until November 21^st, 2025.

• Since then, the U.S. Senate has taken 12 votes to re-open the federal government, fund WIC and SNAP, and stop inflicting pain on the American people. Senator Mullin has voted to re-open the government all 12 times.

• On Thursday October 23^rd, 2025, the U.S. Senate voted on S.3012, the Shutdown Fairness Act to ensure all essential federal employees like law enforcement, air traffic controllers, and U.S. military personnel receive their paychecks for working during a shutdown. Senators Mullin and Lankford voted to advance the commonsense bill, which earned the support of most Senators but failed to reach the 60-vote threshold to pass. 

• This clean CR is the same exact language Chuck Schumer authored last year and has supported four times—most recently in March 2025. It has no Republican policy riders. Senate Democrats supported this clean CR 13 times under the Biden administration.

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