WASHINGTON — Maryland members of Congress voted along party lines Friday as Democrats and Republicans failed to agree on a plan to fund the government past Sept. 30.

In voting against a stopgap measure, Maryland Democrats joined their party’s efforts to force concessions from Republicans, including on the massive health care cuts approved in a budget bill known as the “One Big Beautiful Bill” in July.

Republicans hold majorities in both chambers of Congress along with the White House. Democrats have had few, if any, meaningful legislative wins since President Donald Trump took office in January and began making sweeping cuts to government resources.

Several of Maryland’s Democrats have been out in front resisting Trump’s policy and budget proposals. Federal changes have had an outsize effect on the state because of its government agencies and hundreds of thousands of federal jobs.

Congress members say they’ve been willing to negotiate and are playing a bargaining chip they hope will get Republicans to the table.

Rep. Jamie Raskin said the vote Friday represented a “point of leverage” for his party against Republicans as the GOP and Trump continue to “dismantle” the federal government.

“This is an opportunity for us to demand that they restore the millions of people who have been thrown off of their Medicaid health insurance coverage and that they renew the ACA [Affordable Care Act] health care subsidies,” Raskin said.

He added that Republicans will need to negotiate with Democrats to avoid a shutdown. Meanwhile, he and others are planning to “hang tough” for their constituents’ health care.

Federal workers on their minds

Maryland is home to hundreds of thousands of federal jobs and workers dependent on government contracts. Since the Trump administration started slashing the federal workforce, the state has lost more than 12,000 federal jobs.

A government shutdown would likely mean federal workers who still have jobs would go without a paycheck.

Rep. Glenn Ivey has more than 40,000 federal workers in his district, according to the Congressional Research Service. He said he voted no on the stopgap to “draw a line and find a way to fight back.”

He said federal workers in his district “will understand that the Trump administration is doing everything to crush them.” Aligning with Republicans on this resolution won’t stop that from happening, he said.

Raskin and Rep. Sarah Elfreth also have tens of thousands of federal workers living in their districts. Both said their constituents have told them to push back on Trump’s harmful policies.

Elfreth said she wouldn’t vote for a measure that doesn’t address the health care affordability crisis. She said she’s willing to negotiate with Republicans.

“I came to Congress to get things done and not to shut down the government,” she said, “but I also came to Congress to work with anybody who wants to work with me on solutions.”

Passing a budget is the most basic responsibility Congress has, said Rep. Johnny Olszewski Jr., and he knows Americans don’t want a shutdown. He said he doesn’t want a shutdown.

“I cannot in good conscience ignore the heartless and cruel cuts that have already been made by Republicans and the president,” he said.

Olszewski asserted, Republicans “control all of the levers of power in Washington.”

“If there’s a shutdown, it’s their shutdown,” he said.

Senate has the bill, House is out

The House passed the Republican-led bill, called a continuing resolution, to cheers and applause and then adjourned until Oct. 1, giving the Senate no option but to work with what it had.

In the Senate, Republicans didn’t win enough Democratic votes to meet a 60-vote threshold, known as the filibuster.

Senate Democrats proposed a counteroffer that would have reversed the steep cuts to health care passed in July.

Even before the bill hit the Senate, Maryland’s senators had made their decisions.

Ahead of the vote, Sen. Angela Alsobrooks called the Republican bill a “nonstarter” and said in a statement she’s ready to negotiate a bipartisan alternative to avoid a shutdown.

“I cannot and will not support a bill that does not fix the mess Republicans have created,” she said.

Sen. Chris Van Hollen walked up to the desk clerk on the Senate floor Friday and pointed his thumb down in disapproval, as other Democrats did.

Van Hollen has known for some time where he stood on the vote. He said Saturday in an interview before speaking at the Iowa Democrats’ annual steak fry that he wasn’t going to vote “to fund Donald Trump’s continued illegal activity and violation of the law.”

“So the question is whether or not Republicans in Congress also want to stand up for the Constitution and ensure we erect guardrails to protect that from happening,” he said.

Rep. Andy Harris’ office did not respond to a request for comment.

Both sides stood firm

Leading up to the vote, Democrats and Republicans entrenched in their positions spent days repeating the same talking points.

Even after the vote, each blamed the other side for its unwillingness to wade into middle ground.

Senate majority leader John Thune of South Dakota said in a news conference Friday, “This isn’t the last vote that we’re going to have on keeping government open.”

Senate minority leaders Chuck Schumer, a Democrat from New York, said he hoped Republicans will “now see that the only way to avoid a shutdown is negotiate with Democrats.”