The U.S. Senate started its final votes Monday night to reopen the government, aiming to end the longest shutdown ever after a few Democrats made a deal with Republicans. But the shutdown might stretch a little longer because the House of Representatives, which has been on break since mid-September, must come back to vote on the bill. President Donald Trump backed the bill, saying on Monday, "we're going to be opening up our country very quickly." Shortly after nightfall, senators began a lively debate. Senate Majority Leader John Thune promised the vote would take "hours not days." Meanwhile, Speaker Mike Johnson told lawmakers to return to Washington “right now” because travel is delayed because of the shutdown. He planned to officially call the House back once the Senate finishes voting. Johnson emphasized, "We have to do this as quickly as possible." The House had not been in session since mid-September, when it passed a bill to keep the government funded. After long talks, moderate Senate Democrats agreed to reopen the government without a guaranteed extension of health care tax credits. This angered many Democrats who want Republicans to negotiate help for people before those Affordable Care Act credits expire on January 1. Thune said there would be a vote on the subsidies in mid-December, but no one is sure it will pass. In a hint of things to come, the Senate voted 47-53 straight along party lines not to extend these health care subsidies for a year. Republicans allowed this vote to move things quickly and send the main bill to the House. The six-week deadlock broke when three former governors — Senators Jeanne Shaheen and Maggie Hassan from New Hampshire and Independent Angus King from Maine — agreed on Sunday to support three bipartisan spending bills and extend government funding until late January. Senator Tim Kaine from Virginia and some other Democrats also joined them, switching their votes. But Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer from New York, along with most Democrats, voted against moving the package forward. The new law reverses mass firings of federal workers by the Trump administration since October 1. It also protects federal employees from future layoffs through January and promises they will get paid as soon as the shutdown ends. Although 10-12 Democrats had been part of the negotiations, only five ended up supporting the deal — just enough to get it passed by Republicans. King, Cortez Masto, and Fetterman had already sided with reopening since shutdown day one. The agreement includes bills to fund food aid, veterans’ services, and parts of Congress itself. Many Democrats called the vote a "mistake." Schumer said after a long meeting with his party, "We will not give up the fight," warning about health care. Independent Senator Bernie Sanders, who works with Democrats, called giving up the fight a "horrific mistake." Senator Chris Murphy said voters want Democrats to "hold firm." House Democrats quickly criticized the Senate. Congressman Greg Casar called the deal a "betrayal" because it doesn't lower health care costs. But not everyone was against Schumer. House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries praised Schumer's leadership during the shutdown and pointed to recent election results to say, "The American people know we are on the right side of this fight."