Ron Johnson's reversal came just after President Trump called on Senate Republicans to end the filibuster as a way to end the government shutdown

Suspending or eliminating the Senate’s current defining feature — the filibuster — is something no Republican Senate leader has backed in decades. Thune, a lifelong institutionalist, is having none of it.

Bipartisan Senate talks aimed at ending the government shutdown continued as both parties grappled with the fallout from Tuesday's elections, and the FAA said it would cut airline capacity in dozens of markets.

Returning from the White House Wednesday after President Donald Trump made yet another call for Senate Republicans to overturn the filibuster, Majority Leader John Thune reiterated his view that there are not the necessary votes among Senate Republicans to change the Senate rules.

Administration officials, hoping to reassure wary Republicans, have claimed in recent days that there is no plan for military intervention, despite the president’s threats.