Congress returns to Washington on Monday, 9 November, for a lame-duck session that will decide how much of President Donald Trump’s unfinished business gets done before Democrats take over — and whether the federal government stays open past 11 December. It will be the last weeks of unified Republican control of Congress and the White House.
The lame-duck session runs from the week of 9 November until Christmas, with a Thanksgiving break in between. The current stopgap funding law, H.R. 6500, keeps most federal programmes running at last year’s spending levels, but it expires on 11 December. If Congress has not passed a new funding law by then, a funding lapse would begin on 12 December, shutting down parts of the government.
A long list, and little of it finished
The funding fight is the biggest item, but far from the only one. As of 3 November, the House had passed only 3 of the 12 regular spending bills and the Senate had passed none, according to the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget. The main fight is over defence: the Trump administration wants a record $1.5 trillion, which Senate Democrats have called a nonstarter. The annual defence bill, which sets military policy and runs to about $1.15 trillion, also still needs to pass.
The farm bill, which covers crop programmes and food assistance, expired on 30 September. The surveillance authority known as FISA Section 702 has been lapsed since June. Surface transportation programmes and the National Flood Insurance Program expire on the same day as the funding stopgap, 11 December, while the Export-Import Bank, farm programmes and the Community Health Center Fund all lapse on 31 December.
Who holds the pen
The politics are awkward for both sides. Republicans will maintain control of both chambers until the new Congress is sworn in on 3 January 2027, so the lame-duck Republican majorities must deal with the 11 December deadline — but any funding bill will need Democratic votes in the Senate, and President Trump still holds the veto pen. Democrats, who won both chambers in the 3 November midterms with at least 54 Senate seats, have identified lowering the cost of living and expanding healthcare coverage as their top priorities, including restoring expired tax credits for Affordable Care Act premiums and reversing Republican-led cuts to Medicaid.
The House is scheduled to adjourn on 17 December and the Senate on 18 December, leaving a maximum of about five legislative weeks. Congress has three main options: pass an omnibus bundling the 12 spending bills for full-year funding, pass a shorter stopgap into January or March 2027, or fail to act and let funding lapse on 12 December. As of 5 November, no deal had been announced.
Sources: No Labels (13 Oct 2026); PoliAlert (4-6 Nov 2026); Govtschemes.org (6 Nov 2026); MultiBagg (4 Nov 2026); Rural Home (5 Nov 2026); JKN News (7 Nov 2026).
