US airlines have already cancelled hundreds of flights, as an order from the Federal Aviation Administration to cut domestic operations amid the ongoing government shutdown took effect Friday morning.
The first cut of 4% became mandatory at 6 a.m. ET Friday at 40 high-traffic airports. Major carriers — from United (UAL) to Delta (DAL) to American Airlines (AAL), and many others — had preemptively announced flight changes late Thursday.
The FAA’s cuts will deepen next week and reach 10% if the shutdown continues.
Meanwhile, a federal judge in Rhode Island on Thursday ordered the Trump administration to immediately cover Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits for tens of millions of Americans.
The Trump administration had previously announced plans to only pay partial benefits for the program, which are relied on by about 1 in 8 Americans.
Trump had also previously threatened that money would only go out when the government reopens “and not before.” The Department of Justice immediately appealed the ruling.
On Capitol Hill, the growing economic ripples have increased the pressure on congressional leaders to find a way out of the shutdown — which this week became the longest in US history — but with any sort of breakthrough still elusive.
The Senate has teed up a 15th series of votes Friday to end the shutdown, but those are expected to again come up short.
Bipartisan talks on Capitol Hill have shown some signs of progress but leaders remain locked in stalemate that appears to have increased in the political fallout from Tuesday’s elections.
Trump blamed the shutdown as a key “negative” that contributed to GOP losses in Tuesday’s elections, while Democrats celebrated their electoral wins and suggested their stand on the shutdown — especially their push to elevate the healthcare issue — was being appreciated by voters.
The beginning of November also marked the start of an open enrollment period for healthcare programs run by Affordable Care Act exchanges. Premium increases there — with Democrats looking to extend enhanced government subsidies for those plans — are at the heart of the impasse as some premiums are set to double next year.
Here are the latest updates as the impacts of the government shutdown unfold.
LIVE 54 updates
An airline industry group said Monday that the government shutdown which began Oct. 1 has affected some 3.2 million airline passengers, in the form of delays and cancellations that can be traced back to a shortage of air traffic controllers, Reuters reports.
Air traffic controllers are federal employees who are expected to report to work during the shutdown even though they aren’t being paid. But many have started calling in sick, hence the shortage.
Also on Monday, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the Trump administration would close U.S. aviation if it looked like the shutdown was creating conditions making it too dangerous to travel.