Paul, Democrats block Kennedy effort to pay federal workers during shutdown, not Members of Congress

Watch Kennedy's comments here.

WASHINGTON - Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) today attempted to pass three bills via unanimous consent that would have blocked pay to Members of Congress and restored pay to federal workers during the government shutdown on its 37^th day. Sens. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and Patty Murray (D-Wash.) objected and blocked the bills from passing unanimously.

Key excerpts of Kennedy's speech are below.

"Now, as everyone knows, folks aren't being paid while we're in a shutdown. Our air traffic controllers are not being paid. In fact, starting tomorrow, the airlines are going to be canceling flights. Our staff are not being paid. Federal employees are not being paid. . . . Our military is only being partially paid. . . . The only people that I can ascertain who are being paid are members of Congress."

"Now, I'm not being paid. I said I wasn't going to take a salary during the shutdown. Some of my colleagues are, and I'm not judging anybody. The purpose of this is not to judge anybody. I'm just saying that it's time that Congress set an example."

. . .

"What's good for the goose is good for the gander, and I'm going to offer up these two bills for the members' consideration. So, starting with my first bill, which would say, members of Congress can't be paid and don't get back pay even after we end the shutdown. That's called the No Shutdown Paychecks to Politicians Act. I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of my bill."

After Paul objected to Kennedy's first bill, the No Shutdown Paychecks to Politicians Act, Kennedy also attempted to pass his Withhold Member Pay During Shutdowns Act. Paul objected, arguing that all federal employees who have worked through the shutdown should get paid.

In response, Kennedy attempted to pass Sen. Ron Johnson's (R-Wis.) bill, the Shutdown Fairness Act, to pay all essential federal employees who have worked throughout the shutdown.

"I tried to pass my bill, preventing members of Congress from being paid. You can pretty it up all you want to, but Rand objected. . . . Now, having said that, I said I agreed with what Sen. Paul said. . . . If you're deemed an essential employee right now, you're working, but you're not being paid, Sen. Johnson's bill says we're going to pay you. I voted for that. It also says if you're furloughed, if you need to be deemed nonessential, you're not working, but you will get paid once we come out of this shutdown. Does that make sense? That's what Sen. Ron Johnson has proposed," Kennedy explained. "And as I told my good friend Sen. Paul, I agree with it."

Murray then blocked Kennedy's request, killing the effort to ensure federal employees would be paid during the shutdown.

"I don't know what else to do," Kennedy said in response to Murray's objection. "I voted 14 times to open up the government. I can't change the election. President Trump was duly elected president of the United States. . . . Some of my colleagues are upset about that. In fact, they hate the president so much that they've shut down the government. They hate him so much that if President Trump came out in favor of breathing to live, they would hold their breath."

"It's not rational, and I don't know what else to do. All I can tell my Democratic friends is: Look, reasonable people disagree, and I get it, but you're just being too emotional. You need to go drink a big old cold tall glass of 'get over it' and realize that President Trump is the president of the United States. Don't shut the government down because of it," Kennedy concluded.

Watch Kennedy's full exchange with Paul and Murray here.

Watch Kennedy's remarks from Nov. 5, 2025, regarding shutdown pay here.

Full text of Kennedy's No Shutdown Paychecks to Politicians Act is available here.

Full text of Kennedy's Withhold Member Pay During Shutdowns Act is available here.

Full text of Johnson's Shutdown Fairness Act is available here.

Read more about Kennedy's member pay shutdown bills in Fox News Digital here.

Read Kennedy's op-ed on shutdown pay here.