The U.S. House of Representatives is due to vote Wednesday afternoon on a bill that would restore funding to government agencies and end a shutdown that started on October 1 and is now in its 42nd day.

The Republican-controlled Senate approved the deal on Monday night after eight Democrats broke ranks to side with Republicans. 

House Speaker Mike Johnson has said he expects it to pass his chamber as well before U.S. President Donald Trump signs it into law. "We're opening up our country. Should have never been closed," Trump said at a Veterans Day event in Arlington, Virginia.

The deal, which would extend funding through January 30, has divided Democrats, who had sought to extend healthcare subsidies for 24 million Americans past the end of the year, when they are due to expire.

Divided democrats

The Democratic Party's liberal base has reacted to the deal with fury, arguing that Senate Democrats had capitulated in a fight they were winning.

Progressives took a much harsher tone, with the advocacy group Our Revolution urging Democratic Senate Minority leader Chuck Schumer, who opposed the bill vocally and voted against it, to resign as minority leader. At the same time, Representative Ro Khanna of California said in a statement, "Senator Schumer is no longer effective and should be replaced."

California Governor Gavin Newsom on social media called the compromise "Pathetic. This isn't a deal. It's surrender."

Congressional Democrats had refused to allow a government funding bill to pass until their demands for renewing the subsidy were met.

"Caving on a deal that doesn't fix health care is, and always has been, a giant betrayal of the American people," said former Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal of Washington State.

The deal faced criticism even from party moderates, including New Jersey Governor-elect Mikie Sherrill, who called it "malpractice."

The defected senators argued that their party's shutdown strategy wasn't working and lasting damage was being done to the economy. But critics said they left those desperate for relief from healthcare premium increases in the lurch.

A traditional conflict between the Democrats and Republicans has shifted to within the Democrats, said Sun Taiyi, associate professor of political science at Christopher Newport University in the United States, in an interview with Phoenix TV.

The Democratic senators and representatives who have consistently held their ground are strongly dissatisfied with those who defected, as the latter have received benefits, while those who did not receive any benefits are still expected to bear the same costs as those who did, he added.

Another potential shutdown

Senate Republicans have agreed to hold a separate vote on healthcare subsidies in December, but there is no guarantee it will pass the chamber, and Johnson has yet to say whether the House will even hold a vote, setting the stage for another potential shutdown showdown.

Noting the compromised deal only lasts until January 30 next year, Sun Taiyi said it cannot permanently resolve the issue as there will be another potential government shutdown starting from February, especially if the Republicans fail to honor its verbal commitments to the Democrats.

Sun Bingyan, a U.S. politics and diplomacy specialist at the University of International Relations, noted that Republicans varied on healthcare subsidies, so that they would lack the motivation to resolve the question on healthcare subsidies with Democrats.

With the compromised deal set to expire in January and new funding needed, the eight defected Democrats may face a dilemma: If no agreement on healthcare is reached, will they compromise again? The political cost of their compromise is high, which could lead to a continued shutdown in February, he added.

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