Chiara Caria explores the US government shutdown.
On November 5th, the federal government shutdown entered its 36th day, making it the longest shutdown in US history. As the shutdown drags on, the government has ceased providing basic services and many government workers missed pay. It is still unclear when Washington lawmakers will reach a deal and put an end to their budget standoff.
Congress was supposed to pass a bill funding government service at the beginning of last month, when the previous federal budget expired. Democrats demanded a reversal to Trump’s cut to Medicaid, and an extension to tax credits for health insurance for the annual budget, but Republicans refused. That’s how the shutdown began. In the US system, Congress must approve a spending plan to send to the President to be signed into law. If Congress fails to agree on the budget by the end of the fiscal year, government services need to be temporarily suspended until the bill is approved and signed. In addition, government workers either stop receiving their paychecks or get put on furlough. Federal workers wait for the end of the shutdown in fear, as Trump told reporters that only workers “who deserve to be taken care of” will get back pay once the shutdown ends.
Parks and museums have been closed throughout the country. Money for SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) has run out, leaving thousands of low-income people across the nation without aid. Basic services such as social security, Medicare benefits, border protection, law enforcement, and air traffic control should remain operative despite the shutdown. However, since thousands of workers have been put on furlough, it is relatively impossible for these agencies to function as they normally would have.
This is not the first time the US federal government has gone through a similar shutdown. It already happened 3 times during the first Trump administration. The last shutdown occurred due to disagreements over funding of a wall on the Mexico border. It ended when air traffic controllers started calling in sick, after a month without pay. Several traffic controllers have started doing the same thing in the current shutdown, giving hope to many that this will pressure lawmakers to reach a compromise.
Government shutdowns are usually resolved by Congress passing continuing resolutions, which provide short-term funding while negotiations for a long-term solution continue. As both parties remain convinced of their propositions, analysts remain unable to predict when the federal shutdown will be put to an end.