Thune, Trump Warn Democrats: GOP Is United, Time To End the Shutdown
Senate Republicans sent a clear message from the White House on Tuesday: they’re standing firmly with President Donald Trump, and it’s time for Democrats to stop playing games and reopen the government.
Standing beside Trump in the Rose Garden, Senate Majority Leader John Thune told reporters, “This is the fourth week of the Democrats’ shutdown, but we are all here today because your Republican team in the Senate is unified.”
“Senate Republicans, House Republicans, and the President of the United States are all in favor of opening the federal government,” Thune continued. “You have a united team that believes profoundly that we need to get our government open. If Democrats want to talk about unrelated issues, fine, but not at the expense of everyday Americans.”
The working lunch, held in the freshly renovated Rose Garden that President Trump proudly showcased, brought together top Republican leaders, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, Senators Chuck Grassley, Mike Lee, Ted Cruz, Jim Banks, Tim Scott, Mitch McConnell, and Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody.
President Trump delivered remarks before the meal, slamming Senate Democrats for refusing to pass a clean, bipartisan continuing resolution (CR) that would immediately reopen the government.
“From the beginning, our message has been very simple,” Trump said. “We will not be extorted on this crazy plot of theirs. … Chuck Schumer and the Senate Democrats need to vote for the clean, bipartisan CR and reopen our government — right now.”
The president didn’t hold back in calling out the Democratic leadership, accusing them of obstruction and delaying the process purely out of political spite.
“They are the obstructionists. And the reason they are doing it is because we are doing so well,” Trump said. “We’re doing so well all over the world. And they hate it.”
Democrats, meanwhile, tried to dismiss the Republican show of force. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer criticized the Rose Garden gathering as a “pep rally” on X, claiming Republicans should be focused on fixing healthcare rather than holding what he called “photo ops.”
Trump, unfazed by the criticism, joked about one senator’s absence.
“Everybody showed up,” he said, pausing. “We’re just missing one person.”
That lone absence was Kentucky Senator Rand Paul, who clarified on social media, “I actually wasn’t invited to the White House lunch today, but that’s OK. I had a previously scheduled Liberty Caucus Lunch with [Congressman] Thomas Massie.”
I actually wasn’t invited to the White House lunch today, but that’s ok I had a previously scheduled Liberty Caucus Lunch with ?@MassieforKY? pic.twitter.com/7IHoQiZ3OR
— Rand Paul (@RandPaul) October 21, 2025
Still, the message from Republicans was unmistakable: the party is unified, the shutdown needs to end, and the political stunts from the left are running out of steam.