The Senate will return to a fast-approaching government funding deadline, but this time both sides appear ready to avoid another shutdown.

When lawmakers in the upper chamber return Monday, they will have three working weeks to fund the government. That process fizzled out before they left town earlier in December, but lawmakers are hopeful that both parties can come together to ward off a repeat of September’s funding deadline.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., told reporters before leaving the Capitol that Democrats’ goal was to have the remaining slate of appropriations bills completed by the Jan. 30 deadline. It takes 12 spending bills to fund the government, and so far, neither chamber has come close to hitting that mark.

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«We want to get through the process and get the appropriations bills done,» Schumer said.

It’s a stark departure from his and Democrats’ earlier position, given that they shut the government down for a record 43 days in a bid to bring expiring Obamacare subsidies to the forefront of discussions.

Congressional Democrats also have been leery of working with their Republican counterparts after President Donald Trump’s roughly $9 billion clawback package, which cut funding to already agreed-to programs and priorities, passed on a partisan vote over the summer.

A similar issue played out just as the Senate was on the cusp of advancing a five-bill spending package before skipping town.

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The Senate appeared primed and ready to advance a government funding package, but a last-minute block from Senate Democrats forced Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., to abandon the plan, for now.  (Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Sens. Michael Bennet, D-Colo., and John Hickenlooper, D-Colo., held up the process over the Trump administration’s plan to dismantle the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) in Boulder, Colorado. 

Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought had just announced that same day that the facility would be put under a microscope, and charged that the NCAR was «one of the largest sources of climate alarmism in the country.»

For now, the duo appear entrenched in their position.

«This holiday season, hundreds of NCAR employees face uncertainty about their jobs and communities across the state are worried they won’t get the support they need to rebuild their lives after historic flooding and wildfires,» Bennett said in a statement. «Colorado deserves better, and I am doing everything in my power to fight back and protect our state from the President’s vindictive chaos.»

There’s also the issue of dealing with the Obamacare subsidies, which will have expired by the time lawmakers return to Washington, D.C. A group of bipartisan senators are working on a possible solution, and there are plans in the House — one from the GOP that already passed and another bipartisan effort that is expected to get a vote early next month — that could make their way onto the Senate floor.

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Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo., tried to derail Senate Republicans’ bid to confirm over 80 of President Donald Trump’s nominees, but the GOP instead is putting even more into a package for a vote next week.  (Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images)

And Congressional Democrats are likely to use the healthcare issue as leverage during the impending spending fight.

Exactly how lawmakers avoid another shutdown is still in the air. The Senate is determined to advance its five bill package, which includes legislation to fund the departments of Defense, Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, Commerce, Justice, Interior, Transportation, and Housing and Urban Development.

But in order for those bills to make it to Trump’s desk, the House has to agree. So far, the lower chamber has only passed a handful of spending bills, and has not brought any appropriations bills to the floor for months.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., already is gaming out a «a contingency plan.»

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«We got to fund the government by the end of the month,» Thune said. «And so we’re looking at, you know, determining what that looks like, obviously, if we can pass the five bill package, and if we can’t, then what that looks like.»

«So there’s a lot of thought being given and just to make sure that we don’t end up in a, you know, posture at the end of the month where we’re looking at, staring at a shutdown again,» he continued.

Protests spread across Iran on Tuesday after President Donald Trump and other administration officials voiced support for demonstrators. Speaking Monday, Trump pointed to Iran’s economic collapse and long-standing public discontent while stopping short of calling for regime change.

Inside Iran, demonstrations entered a third consecutive day, expanding beyond the capital’s commercial center. The exiled opposition coalition National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) reported widespread strikes and student protests across Tehran and multiple provincial cities, describing clashes with security forces and anti-government chants. A video obtained by the NCRI appears to show protesters pushing back security forces, forcing them to leave the scene on Tehran’s Jomhouri Street. 

Iran International reported that universities emerged as major protest hubs, with rallies at Tehran University, Sharif University of Technology, Shahid Beheshti University, Elm-o-Sanat University and Khajeh Nasir University. Security forces tightened entry controls at campuses and reinforced offices linked to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

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Strikes spread across Tehran’s Shoush and Molavi districts and into Isfahan’s Naqsh-e Jahan Square, while parts of Tehran’s Grand Bazaar and the gold market shut down. Mobile phone traders gathered outside major shopping centers after closing their stores. Protests turned violent in several locations, with tear gas fired in Tehran and Malard and reports of live fire in Hamadan. Nighttime demonstrations were reported from Qeshm Island in the south to Zanjan and Hamadan in the north, with videos showing chants of «death to the dictator.»

Speaking at a press conference at Mar-a-Lago on Monday, Trump said he was «not going to talk about overthrow of a regime.» Instead, he focused on Iran’s deteriorating economy and the state’s violent response to protests. «They’ve got tremendous inflation. Their economy is busted, the economy is no good,» Trump said. 

He said that when Iranians gather to protest, the regime responds with lethal force.

«Every time they have a riot or somebody forms a group, little or big, they start shooting people,» Trump said. «You know, they kill people. All of a sudden people start getting shot and that group disbanded pretty quickly.»

Trump said he has watched the unrest build for years, describing Iran’s leadership as brutal.

«I’ve watched this for years — there is tremendous discontent,» he said. «I’ve watched it for years, and vicious, vicious people.» His remarks came as protests intensified following the collapse of Iran’s currency to historic lows. The rial fell to roughly 1.45 million per U.S. dollar on the open market, triggering strikes and demonstrations centered on Tehran’s Grand Bazaar and spreading to other major cities, according to Iran International’s live reporting. Videos and eyewitness accounts described heavy security deployments, clashes with demonstrators and the use of tear gas as unrest widened.

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U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz issued a direct message of support. «The people of Iran want freedom,» Waltz wrote on X. «We stand with Iranians in the streets of Tehran and across the country as they protest a radical regime that has brought them nothing but economic downturn and war.» 

A parallel statement from the U.S. government’s Persian-language account, @USAbehFarsi, said Washington supports the Iranian people’s efforts «to make their voices heard,» urging the Islamic Republic to respect fundamental rights rather than suppress protests.

Iranian officials acknowledged the unrest but defended the government’s approach. Reuters reported that government spokeswoman Fatemeh Mohajerani said Tehran recognizes protests and that officials would set up a mechanism to engage with protest leaders. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian directed his interior minister to address protesters’ «legitimate demands» and engage in dialogue with their representatives.

Independent analysts warned the unrest reflects deeper structural strains. The OSINT research group SpecialEurasia said in an assessment on Tuesday that Iran’s internal stability has reached a «critical threshold,» citing the convergence of currency collapse, renewed international sanctions and chronic water and energy shortages. The group noted that the participation of bazaar merchants, traditionally a pillar of regime support, signals declining confidence in the state’s economic management and raises the risk of prolonged unrest.

NCRI leader Maryam Rajavi said the protests reflect the anger of «tens of millions» driven to the breaking point by inflation, corruption and clerical rule. NCRI’s claims reflect opposition reporting and cannot be independently verified due to restrictions on access inside Iran.

Protesters march in downtown Tehran, Iran, Monday, Dec. 29, 2025. (Fars News Agency via AP)

Cameron Khansarinia, vice president of the National Union for Democracy in Iran, said the latest demonstrations underscore a growing shift in public sentiment. «Iranians have once again taken to the streets.» Citing President Donald Trump’s remarks this week, he added that «each time they do, the regime tries to crush it,» but argued that «Iranians’ desire to be free is increasingly becoming greater than their fear of the regime.» Khansarinia claimed that chants in support of Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi have been growing in the protests, saying the protesters showed «remarkable bravery.» 

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Protesters march in downtown Tehran, Iran, Monday, Dec. 29, 2025. (Fars News Agency via AP)

As protests continue, verification of casualties and arrests remains limited, but the scale and spread of the unrest underscore mounting pressure on Iran’s leadership amid economic free fall and growing public defiance.

Estudiantes se sumaron al movimiento de protesta de comerciantes contra el elevado costo de vida y la hiperinflación que golpea a Irán, un país afectado por severas sanciones occidentales.

La República Islámica sufre desde hace años un encarecimiento de productos básicos y una irrefrenable caída de su moneda, el rial. La inflación interanual se situó en diciembre en 52%, según el Centro de Estadísticas.

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En el tercer día de protestas, el presidente iraní, Masud Pezeshkian, pidió a sus ministros escuchar “las demandas legítimas” de los manifestantes y “actuar con todas sus fuerzas para resolver los problemas”.

Irán atraviesa una grave crisis económica agravada por las sanciones internacionales, en un año en que sufrió además ataques israelíes y estadounidenses en sus plantas nucleares.

Las protestas se extienden al interior del país

Pero el llamado presidencial no aplacó las protestas. Estudiantes universitarios se sumaron a las movilizaciones en Teherán y en la ciudad de Ispahan, en el centro del país, según la agencia de prensa Ilna, cercana a los sindicatos.

Agobiados por el efecto en sus negocios, vendedores de la capital cerraron sus tiendas el lunes y marcharon contra el deterioro de la situación económica.

Las movilizaciones comenzaron el domingo en el mayor mercado de teléfonos celulares de Teherán. Imágenes de la agencia de noticias estatal Fars mostraron que las fuerzas de seguridad lanzaron gases lacrimógenos para dispersar las protestas.

“Pedí al ministro del Interior que escuche las demandas legítimas de los manifestantes” para que el gobierno “pueda actuar con todas sus fuerzas para resolver los problemas y hacerlo de manera responsable”, aseguró el presidente Pezeshkian en la red social X.

Aumenta la vigilancia policial

Este martes por la mañana, la mayoría de las tiendas y cafeterías estaban abiertas en la avenida Vali-asr, que atraviesa la capital de norte a sur a lo largo de 18 kilómetros.

Policías antidisturbios vigilaban las principales plazas del centro de la ciudad.

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Para el miércoles, las autoridades decretaron el cierre de escuelas, bancos y establecimientos públicos en Teherán y otras partes del país por el frío y para ahorrar energía, indicó la prensa estatal, que no lo vinculó a las protestas.

El presidente del Parlamento, Mohamad Bagher Ghalibaf, pidió a los diputados y políticos a tomar las “medidas necesarias para aumentar el poder adquisitivo de la población”.

Sin embargo, también alertó contra el riesgo de instrumentalización de estas protestas para sembrar “el caos”.

Moneda en caída libre

El rial iraní alcanzó el domingo un nuevo mínimo histórico frente al dólar, según el tipo de cambio informal en el mercado negro, a más de 1,4 millones de riales por dólar (frente a los 820.000 de hace un año) y 1,7 millones por euro (frente a los 855.000).

El lunes, la divisa se recuperó ligeramente.

Esta depreciación crónica llevó a una hiperinflación y a una fuerte volatilidad en Irán, donde algunos precios aumentan considerablemente de un día para otro.

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Esta situación paraliza las ventas de algunos productos importados. Tanto vendedores como compradores prefieren posponer cualquier transacción a la espera de que la situación se aclare.

“Ningún dirigente nos ha apoyado ni ha tratado de averiguar cómo afecta el tipo de cambio del dólar a nuestras vidas. Tuvimos que manifestar nuestro descontento”, lamentó un manifestante citado por el diario local Etemad.

La economía iraní, ya debilitada por décadas de sanciones occidentales, sufre además por el restablecimiento a finales de septiembre por parte de la ONU de las penalizaciones internacionales relacionadas con su programa nuclear, que habían sido levantadas hace diez años.

(Con información de AFP)