WASHINGTON – It's official: The government shutdown has become the longest in U.S. history, marking 36 painful days of missed paychecks, travel disruptions, food shortages and other mounting consequences for millions of Americans.

Before and after the milestone approached, the political gridlock that has defined much of the month-long crisis in Washington showed some signs of abating, particularly following big election wins for Democrats on Tuesday night in major off-year races in New York, New Jersey and Virginia.

Democrats broadly characterized their victories as rebukes of President Donald Trump's agenda, while Republicans criticized their opponents for dragging out the shutdown to avoid losing progressive voters.

Whether those wins will embolden Democrats to hold firm in their shutdown stances, or motivate them to end it, isn't clear.

As voters were heading to the polls Tuesday, senators shot down a short-term funding measure for the 14th time. Still, rank-and-file lawmakers in Congress have said in recent days that bipartisan back-channeling is picking up, and they're getting closer to a potential agreement to persuade moderate Senate Democrats to break ranks.

"We're hoping this will be the week when the Democrats come to their senses and decide to reopen the government," Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-South Dakota, told reporters Tuesday.

In exchange for reopening the government, Republicans have promised Democrats a Senate vote, which would likely fail, on extending Obamacare subsidies, which have been central to the shutdown debate. Progressive lawmakers have said that offer isn't enough, though moderates seem warmer to the notion.

Senate Democrats met for several hours on Capitol Hill Tuesday to discuss their shutdown off-ramp options. Their leader, Chuck Schumer, D-New York, didn't elaborate on where exactly his members landed.

"We're exploring all the options," he said.

Trump urges Senate GOP to eliminate filibuster

Trump urged Senate Republicans to abolish the filibuster, which allows a minority of lawmakers to block legislation including a bill to reopen the government, during a White House breakfast.

"The first thing we should do this afternoon is terminate the filibuster," Trump said. "It’s horrible."

The filibuster is a Senate rule that requires 60 of the 100 members to agree to advance legislation. With 53 Republicans and 47 lawmakers who caucus with Democrats, the rule requires a bipartisan vote on contentious legislation.

Trump said Republicans should approve their own legislation without Democrats, such as prohibiting mail-in voting and requiring voter identification at the polls.

But he acknowledged that half of Senate Republicans oppose getting rid of the filibuster. He argued that Democrats will end the filibuster if they regain control of the chamber.

"We’re going to talk about that a little bit," Trump said. "We’re going to see if we can sway."

Trump also blasted a "blue slip" tradition, which is basically an extension of the filibuster that allows senators to block presidential nominees in their own states, such as U.S. attorneys.

"The blue slips are a total disaster," Trump said. "I think we’re going to court on it."

-Bart Jansen

Trump invites Republican senators to White House breakfast amid push to eliminate filibuster

Trump invited all GOP senators to the White House on Wednesday morning for breakfast.

It comes as he has urged them as recently as Tuesday night to vote to eliminate the filibuster to reopen the government, which would allow for a simple majority, rather than 60 votes, to pass significant legislation in the Senate.

Trump’s efforts, however, have been met by resistance from some Republican senators, including Thune, who said Tuesday "the votes aren’t there" to get rid of it.

Both Republicans and Democrats have emphasized the importance of the filibuster in recent days as a necessary threshold to maintain bipartisanship in Congress. Doing away with it would significantly damage already-frayed interparty relations.

- Joey Garrison and Zachary Schermele

Trump oversaw the two longest shutdowns in US history. Here's how they compare.

The Senate failed on its 14th and latest vote to end the government shutdown on Tuesday, positioning it to exceed the stand-alone 35 day record set during Trump’s first term in 2019.

Trump’s combined shutdowns have already eclipsed the collective record of 56 days, which took place over five shutdowns in three years, during President Jimmy Carter’s administration.

Here’s how Trump’s shutdowns compare.

- George Petras

Thune says lawmakers are discussing new short-term funding deadline

Thune said Tuesday the Senate will soon change the Nov. 21 deadline for a short-term spending bill to reopen the government.

Thune said lawmakers are still discussing the best date to give lawmakers time to approve full-year spending bills. Options include a spending extension into early 2026. But Thune said "nobody" wants to keep the same spending levels for an entire fiscal year.

If lawmakers in both chambers agree to a date, the Senate could vote on it and then send it back to the House, which has been recessed for more than a month, for ratification.

"There is a conversation about what the next deadline should be," Thune said. "The date is something that is still being discussed."

Man who threatened to kill member of Congress arrested at Senate office building

U.S. Capitol Police arrested a Pennsylvania man Tuesday who'd threatened to kill a member of Congress.

Law enforcement officers stopped the man, whom they identified as 43-year-old Richard Griffin, before going through a security screening at a Senate office building in Washington.

The arrest came as Capitol Police haven't been fully paid in recent weeks due to the government shutdown, even though lawmakers have been increasingly concerned about their own security since the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk in September.

-Zachary Schermele

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: It's official. The government shutdown is the longest ever. Live updates.

Reporting by Zachary Schermele, Rebecca Morin and Bart Jansen, USA TODAY / USA TODAY

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