As the federal government shutdown stretched into its fifth week with no sign of resolution, Senator John Fetterman of Pennsylvania delivered a blunt rebuke of his own party, accusing Democrats of political gamesmanship while millions of Americans faced real hardship.
“It’s an absolute failure,” Fetterman told CNN, as funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) expired over the weekend. The lapse could cut off food benefits for roughly 40 million low-income Americans. “Imagine being a parent with a couple kids and how you’re going to fill their refrigerator and pack their lunches and get on with their lives when the things that they’ve depended on is gone because we can’t even agree to just open things up,” he said. “I’m apologizing that we can’t even get our sh** together and just open up our government.”
The Senate adjourned Thursday without an agreement, marking the 34th day of what has become one of the longest government shutdowns in U.S. history. While members of both parties have quietly floated potential compromises, negotiations remain stalled. For millions of families, that means another week of uncertainty as grocery prices climb and food banks struggle to meet demand.
Fetterman described the toll in his own state. His wife, Gisele Fetterman, runs a free store in Braddock, Pennsylvania, that distributes food several times a week. The senator said lines there have already grown since SNAP benefits lapsed. “I’ll encounter people this weekend that have no SNAP benefits,” he said. “I don’t have an explanation for them. All I can say is I’m sorry.”
Fetterman’s remarks highlight a growing frustration among some Democrats who see the party’s leadership using the shutdown as a political wedge rather than a humanitarian crisis. The senator has broken with party leaders more than a dozen times in recent weeks, siding with Republicans who have pushed to reopen the government while continuing negotiations on broader spending issues.
His criticism intensified after Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer reportedly remarked that the shutdown was “getting better for us” politically each day it continued — a comment that, to Fetterman, underscored how far Washington’s priorities have drifted from the people it represents. “Ask the hungry people on Saturday,” he said sharply. “Americans are not leverage. This is not some sh**ty game show about who’s winning.”
The shutdown has left millions without paychecks or federal assistance, from furloughed federal workers to military families to parents relying on food benefits. Lawmakers in both parties have warned that SNAP funding shortfalls could soon force families to turn to already overburdened charities, and aviation officials have raised alarms over increased flight delays due to staffing shortages among air traffic controllers.
For now, there is little indication that either side is close to breaking the impasse. Yet Fetterman’s remarks reflect a sentiment that resonates far beyond his party — a growing impatience with political brinkmanship and a call to focus on the Americans caught in the middle. “This shouldn’t be about who wins,” he said. “It should be about getting our government open and doing the job we were sent here to do.”
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