WASHINGTON (AP) — Senators unanimously approved a resolution Thursday to withhold their pay during government shutdowns, an attempt to make federal closures financially painful for lawmakers after a string of record-breaking impasses in the past year.
The bipartisan support for the measure comes at a time when federal closures have become longer and more frequent, frustrating lawmakers who say there should be punishment when Congress fails at its most basic legislative duty.
Under the resolution, senators’ pay would be withheld by the secretary of the Senate whenever a government shutdown affects one or more agencies, then released once funding is restored. It will take effect the day after the Nov. 3 general election and does not apply to the House.
“Shutting down government should not be our default solution to our refusal to work out our issues and our differences,” said Sen. John Kennedy, the bill’s sponsor, in a floor speech Wednesday.
“This is about putting our money where our mouth is,” said Kennedy, R-La.
Two shutdowns in the past year created significant financial hardship for tens of thousands of federal workers, particularly at the Department of Homeland Security. The department reopened last month after a 76-day partial shutdown, the longest agency funding lapse in history.
The DHS shutdown came just a few months after a 43-day lapse of the entire federal government, which was the longest such closure on record.
The Constitution stipulates that lawmakers must be paid so they have received salaries during shutdowns even as federal workers went without paychecks. When the full government shutdown began in October amid a dispute over health care subsidies, Sen. Lindsey Graham proposed a constitutional amendment to require members to forfeit their paychecks when the government is closed.
“If members of Congress had to forfeit their pay during government shutdowns, there would be fewer shutdowns and they would end quicker,” Graham, R-S.C., said at the time.
Graham said his legislation was the most “constitutionally sound” way to deal with the problem, but the process would have been much more laborious as three-fourths of states must ratify an amendment.
Lawmakers in previous shutdowns have often pledged to forgo their paychecks while federal workers went unpaid. Senators earn an annual salary of $174,000, but many are independently wealthy.
Kennedy told reporters Wednesday that he pushed his measure to ensure there is “shared sacrifice” during shutdowns. He added that it does not go as far as he would like, but that it’s a start.
Asked why it does not extend to the other chamber of Congress, Kennedy said “the House’s business is the House’s business” while also touching on the tensions between the Senate and House.
“There’s a very strong undercurrent of animosity among some of my friends in the House,” Kennedy said.
“It’s quickly becoming like two kids fighting in the back of a minivan,” he said.
Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., speaks during the Senate Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies hearing on Fiscal Year 2027 Budget Request for the FBI, the Drug Enforcement Administration; the United States Marshals Service and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives on Capitol Hill, Tuesday, May 12, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
The U.S. Capitol is seen from Pennsylvania Avenue, Wednesday, May 13, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
LONDON (AP) — Efforts to unseat British Prime Minister Keir Starmer from within his party broke into open rebellion Thursday, with one potential rival resigning from the Cabinet and two others positioning themselves for a future leadership challenge.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting became the first senior minister to quit Thursday in what was seen as a precursor to challenging Starmer's leadership. He said he had lost confidence in Starmer, who should not serve out the rest of his term.
“You have shown courage and statesmanship on the world stage — not least in keeping Britain out of the war in Iran,” Streeting wrote in an excoriating resignation letter. “But where we need vision, we have a vacuum. Where we need direction, we have drift.”
But Streeting stopped short of saying he was the best candidate to lead the party at the next election due by 2029, suggesting Starmer should step aside to allow a “broad” field of candidates to debate the future of the party.
Starmer is under growing pressure to step down after disastrous results for his Labour Party last week in local and regional elections. The election drubbing cemented doubts among many party members about Starmer’s judgment, vision and leadership ability — a brutal indictment on a leader who returned Labour to power in July 2024 after 14 years in opposition.
Starmer responded in a generous letter to Streeting, saying he was “truly sorry” to see him leave the government and praised his stewardship of the state-run National Health Service.
Making no reference to Streeting's criticisms, Starmer laid out his hope the two “can work together to show that Labour in power can address the problems our opponents exploit, can install hope where they want despair, and can bring people together where they want division.”
If Starmer doesn't step down, any challenger would need support from a fifth of Labour lawmakers, or 81, to trigger a leadership contest.
For days, Streeting had been expected to launch a bid Thursday, but the wording of his statement has stoked speculation he doesn't have enough votes yet, or that he is giving Starmer a chance to announce his resignation on his own terms.
Another likely challenger, former Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner, said Thursday that she had reached an agreement with authorities to clear up questions about her taxes that forced her to leave the Cabinet last September. Rayner told the Guardian newspaper that Starmer should “reflect on” his position, adding that she was ready to “play my part” in any leadership election if Streeting triggered a contest.
A third rival, Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham, is ineligible for the leadership because he doesn't have a seat in Parliament, but on Thursday afternoon a Labour lawmaker said he would step aside to make room and Burnham said he would seek permission from party to enter a special election. He could then mount a leadership challenge if elected.
“I grew up in this area and have lived here for 25 years,” Burnham said on X. “I care deeply about it and its people. I know they have been let down by national politics.”
Pressure for Starmer to step aside has intensified since Labour suffered heavy losses in local and regional elections last week, underscoring voter frustration with a government that has failed to deliver on pledges to boost economic growth and improve living standards for working people.
A stagnant economy and stubbornly high inflation have made it difficult for Starmer’s government to deliver on the promises it made when winning a landslide election victory less than two years ago.
Starmer has vowed to remain in office, warning lawmakers that any leadership contest would destabilize the government when it should be focused on issues like the cost of living crisis and war in the Middle East.
The leadership wrangles overshadowed some positive news for the government.
Official figures showed the British economy grew 0.6% in the first three months of the year — more than had been anticipated and larger than the previous quarter, despite the negative impact from the Iran war. More growth means more tax revenues to fund Labour’s priorities and potentially lower borrowing.
Treasury chief Rachel Reeves said the figures showed her policies were working and the party shouldn't put hard-won economic stability at risk “by plunging the country in chaos at a time when there is conflict in the world.”
Streeting himself hailed figures showing that waiting lines for NHS appointments — one of his signature priorities — fell for the fifth straight month, an achievement he is likely to point to if he runs for leader.
Streeting comes from a faction of the left-leaning Labour Party that sees itself as the modernizing wing, as does Starmer. Rayner is a favorite of members who think the party has strayed too far from its working-class roots and those who want the party to do more to boost the minimum wage and raise taxes on the rich.
Unlike the Conservative Party, Labour has never ousted a prime minister in midterm.
“They don’t do ruthless on their leader,’’ said Jonathan Tonge, a professor of politics at the University of Liverpool. “They don’t tend to depose their leader. The Conservatives, they readily do ruthless.’’
Even if Starmer survives this current bout of jitters, he will likely face another challenge in a few months given the level of fragmentation in British politics, he added.
“He’s got a huge parliamentary majority, he’s got more than 400 MPs, and yet his prime ministership may be on the brink of disintegration,” Tonge said.
FILE - This photo combination shows, from left, Wes Streeting in Liverpool, Sept. 30, 2025, Angela Rayner in Shoreditch, London, June 5, 2025, Andy Burnham in Liverpool, Sept. 29, 2025, Shabana Mahmood in Liverpool, Sept. 29, 2025 and Ed Miliband in Hamburg, Germany, Jan. 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Jon Super, Kirsty Wigglesworth, Martin Meissner, File)
Larry the cat, Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office walks at 10 Downing Street in London, Thursday, May 14, 2026 as efforts to unseat British Prime Minister Keir Starmer are likely to break out into open rebellion on Thursday.(AP Photo/Thomas Krych)
British Health Secretary Wes Streeting walks through the House of Commons to attend the State Opening of Parliament at the Palace of Westminster, London, Wednesday, May 13, 2026. (Toby Melville/Pool Photo via AP)
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, center, walks through the House of Commons to attend the State Opening of Parliament at the Palace of Westminster, London, Wednesday, May 13, 2026. (Toby Melville/Pool Photo via AP)
Members of the King's Body Guards of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen at Arms arrive at the Sovereign's Entrance for the State Opening of Parliament in the House of Lords, in London, Wednesday May 13, 2026. (Aaron Chown/Pool Photo via AP)
