The Senate took the first step toward reopening the government, thanks to eight senators willing to break rank with their Democratic colleagues.

The overwhelming majority of Senate Democrats opposed a vote to end the government shutdown on Sunday night, the 15th since funding lapsed on Oct. 1. That includes almost every member of Democratic leadership and many rank-and-file senators known for bipartisan cooperation.

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Yet just enough voted with Republicans for the measure, a short-term funding extension, to clear the Senate’s filibuster.

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