Senate Rejects Defense Spending Bill Amid Shutdown
The $831.5 billion measure passed the House in July.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.), joined by other Senate Republicans, speaks during the 15th day of the government shutdown at a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington on Oct. 15, 2025. Madalina Kilroy/The Epoch Times
The Senate blocked a bill on Oct. 16 to fund the War Department (formally known as the Defense Department) for the 2026 fiscal year amid the government shutdown.
The tally was 50–44. The bill failed to clear the 60-vote filibuster threshold to advance legislation.
Jackson Richman is a Washington correspondent for The Epoch Times. In addition to Washington politics, he covers the intersection of politics and sports/sports and culture. He previously was a writer at Mediaite and Washington correspondent at Jewish News Syndicate. His writing has also appeared in The Washington Examiner. He is an alum of George Washington University.
