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The United States government has officially shut down after Senate Democrats blocked a Republican stopgap funding bill, triggering the country’s 15th funding lapse since 1981 and the first since the record-breaking 35-day closure in 2018–19.
Federal agencies began winding down operations at 12:01 am on Wednesday, after lawmakers and President Donald Trump failed to reach agreement on a temporary budget measure. The Republican proposal would have kept funding in place until 21 November, but Democrats refused to back it without guarantees on health-care subsidies and the reversal of Medicaid cuts.
The deadlock will see around 750,000 federal workers furloughed, with an estimated daily economic hit of $400 million. Essential staff, including members of the armed forces, will be required to work without pay. The shutdown is also expected to delay key economic reports such as Friday’s jobs data, slow down air travel, suspend scientific projects, and disrupt government services nationwide.
Trump further inflamed tensions on Tuesday, suggesting that the shutdown could be an opportunity to downsize government permanently. “A lot of good can come down from shutdowns,” he said, adding that many of those affected would be Democrats. He warned the closure could lead to “irreversible” cuts to federal programmes and jobs, in line with his plan to shrink the civil service by some 300,000 posts by the end of the year.
Democrats, however, accused Republicans of trying to strong-arm them into accepting a stripped-down package. “All they want to do is try to bully us. And they’re not going to succeed,” said Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer.
Republicans rejected that charge, insisting the bill was a practical, short-term solution. Senate Majority Leader John Thune described the failed measure as a “nonpartisan” effort and claimed there was “no substantive reason” for a shutdown “other than politics”.
With $1.7 trillion in agency funding at stake, around a quarter of the government’s $7 trillion annual budget, analysts cautioned that the standoff could last longer than previous shutdowns, given the entrenched positions of both parties. Further votes are expected in the Senate in the coming days, but with neither side signalling any willingness to compromise, there is no immediate path to reopening the government.
