Speaker Mike Johnson is citing airport chaos in his warning to House lawmakers to return to D.C. soon. (Mark Felix/Bloomberg via Getty Images; Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is expected to reduce air travel at the nation's 40 busiest airports by 6% as of Tuesday, amid widespread staffing shortages that have been attributed to the shutdown.
Thousands of federal employees have been furloughed as agencies and critical programs run low on funds, while government workers deemed "essential" have been forced to work without pay for weeks.
People in the latter group include air traffic controllers and Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers, many of whom have been forced to take second jobs and call out sick to make ends meet.
Sen. Jeanne Shaheen speaks at a press conference with other Senate Democrats who voted to restore government funding, in Washington, Nov. 9, 2025. (Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images)
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Johnson told Fox News Digital exclusively earlier Monday that he would call the House back "immediately" upon Senate passage of the bill — which he suggested could come sooner rather than later.
"We're going to get everybody back on a 36-hour notice, so it'll be happening early this week," Johnson said.
The House has not been in session since Sept. 19, when lawmakers there first passed a bill to avert a shutdown by extending current federal funding levels through Nov. 21. Democrats rejected that deal, however, kicking off weeks of a worsening impasse where millions of Americans' federal benefits and air travel were put at risk.
Elizabeth Elkind is a politics reporter for Fox News Digital leading coverage of the House of Representatives. Previous digital bylines seen at Daily Mail and CBS News.
Follow on Twitter at @liz_elkind and send tips to elizabeth.elkind@fox.com
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/johnson-orders-lawmakers-back-dc-right-now-shutdown-sparks-travel-chaos