WASHINGTON — Lawmakers have yet to vote on a government funding bill. But they’re not letting that interrupt blame-casting for a potential shutdown.

Members of both parties have spent weeks depicting their colleagues across the aisle as intent on shutting down the federal government. From Democrats, the message has been about Republican leaders’ refusal to negotiate and add health care or rescissions protections to the bill. From Republicans, it’s focused on what Democrats are opposing: a clean extension of short-term funding, with no partisan policy provisions attached.

What they’re saying is new. For years, the roles were reversed, with Democrats calling for clean funding and Republicans inserting conservative policy add-ons.

But the blame game isn’t.

“We are, as Democrats, talking about our values. And the fact that (the) GOP has set forth a health care crisis upon this country, which we’re illuminating,” Rep. April McClain Delaney told The Baltimore Sun. “We’re only standing up and fighting for those values.”

The House is expected to vote on a government funding bill on Friday. The bill would extend funding until Nov. 21 at current spending levels, known as a continuing resolution, while tying on new funding that has been approved for Congress and the Departments of Agriculture and Veterans Affairs.

The extension would give appropriators more time to negotiate new funding for other federal agencies.

Republican leaders have said that the threats of Democrats to shut down the government fly in the face of common-sense legislating.

“Republicans have advanced a clean, nonpartisan CR to keep the government funded while we continue bipartisan work on regular annual appropriations funding bills,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune said in a floor speech on Thursday. “Democrats? Well, Democrats are threatening to shut down the government if Republicans don’t agree to last night’s laundry list of partisan demands… That tells you all you need to know.”

Democrats pitched their own funding bill on Wednesday night that would permanently extend the Affordable Care Act tax credits, roll back Medicaid cuts in the One Big, Beautiful Bill, and protect against potential White House attempts to claw back approved funds.

Maryland’s Democratic lawmakers say that, if the GOP bill passes, potential funding clawbacks could undercut it and end up harming federal workers. But if they vote against it, lawmakers could face the political repercussions of shutting the government down, along with the definite effect on Maryland’s roughly 230,000 federal workers.

“Normally, Maryland is pretty strongly opposed to a shutdown because of how it disproportionately impacts our constituents,” Rep. Sarah Elfreth said. “However, this is just an utterly unacceptable moment.”

Early messaging against the bill can help avert political fallout.

House Democrats are playing the long game, lawmakers told The Baltimore Sun. Stuck in the minority, their messaging is all to aid their ultimate objective: retaking the majority in 2026.

“You already see them scattering a little bit,” Rep. Glenn Ivey of Prince George’s County said. “(Virginia Republican Jen) Kiggans and some of the other Republicans that are in purple seats are trying to come up with ways to cover their behinds.”

It also served as a means to explain their opposition to federal employees who stand to be most impacted by a shutdown.

“They’re at risk, but this administration — this president — has already shown a disdain for federal workers,” said Rep. Johnny Olszewski of Baltimore County. “He’s fired thousands of them unnecessarily, and in some cases illegally. So I don’t think that Republicans can pretend to now care about federal workers, given their support of the president and his approach to those federal workers.”

While Maryland’s members lamented the catch-22, most signaled their minds were already made up about the current bill. And they pointed to federal workers as one of their reasons to oppose it.

“We all want to keep the government open. That is our No. 1 job,” McClain Delaney said. But, “What other leverage do you have?”

“It’s already happening,” she added, referring to federal workers experiencing unrest over the past few months. “It seems like this administration only stops when you draw a bright line, or the court does.”

Federal employees have been a target of the administration since President Donald Trump took office. Roughly 148,000 have either left their jobs voluntarily or been fired under Trump. The administration expects that number to be around 300,000 by the end of the year.

The Trump administration has dealt repeated blows to federal employees who work or live in Maryland. The Department of Health and Human Services has terminated 10,000 workers, and the state has lost about 12,700 federal jobs since Trump’s inauguration — the most in the nation.

“We are not taking it lightly,” Maryland Sen. Angela Alsobrooks told The Sun about the potential effect. “We are very concerned about health care, health care cuts. I think this is really an important time.”

“And the impact has already been, just, severe,” Alsobrooks added.

Lawmakers in both parties believe they have political cover if a shutdown happens. Republicans control Congress and the White House; therefore, Democrats say, it’d be their fault. And at least one Republican agrees with them — should they fail to pass it in the House.

“That’ll be our fault,” Rep. Rich McCormick, R-Ga., said. But if House Republicans unite and pass it, and Democrats kill it in the Senate, “then they’ll be blamed for it. And then they’ll live with that.”

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