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Bipartisan talks to reach an agreement to end the shutdown are expected to continue Saturday after Republicans rejected an offer from Democrats Friday to reopen the government in exchange for a one-year extension of health insurance tax credits. Thune told CBS News the offer is a "nonstarter," stressing that there is a proposal on the table that a group of bipartisan senators have been circling. "We need to vote to open the government. And there is a proposal out there to do that, and then we can have this whole conversation about health care," Thune said. The contours of the deal to end the stalemate began emerging earlier this week, with a possible agreement that would fund the government alongside long-term appropriations bills in exchange for a vote on extending health insurance tax credits that Democrats have demanded. But while some moderates have been eager to find a solution to reopen the government, others in the caucus appear emboldened by the party's sweep in key races in Tuesday's elections, pushing to hold out longer in the shutdown fight in an effort to extract further concessions. Though Senate GOP leaders planned to move ahead with a vote on the continuing resolution Friday, with a plan to amend the bill to include the full-year funding measures if it advanced, the vote never materialized. Instead, Senate Republicans tried to advance a measure to pay federal workers who are working during the shutdown on Friday, which failed to reach the 60-vote threshold, picking up support from just three Democrats. Whether the chamber votes Saturday remains to be seen. "We'll see if something comes together that we can vote on," Thune told reporters Friday night.
