The U.S. government began shutting down early Wednesday after contentious budget negotiations between Congress and President Donald Trump failed, primarily due to a standoff over Democratic demands for health care funding.
Both Republicans and Democrats quickly pointed fingers, blaming each other for the impasse. The shutdown is expected to disrupt services for millions of Americans and furlough hundreds of thousands of federal employees.
Multiple federal agencies and departments are halting operations as the political stalemate in Washington deepens, sparking concerns about how long the shutdown will last and its broader impact.
President Trump, during a briefing in the Oval Office, warned that Democrats and their constituents would bear the brunt of the shutdown, hinting at mass layoffs and targeting progressive programs. He suggested that the pause could be used to eliminate Democratic-backed initiatives, stating, “A lot of good can come from shutdowns.”
The shutdown officially began at 12:01 a.m. (0401 GMT) on Wednesday after the Senate failed to pass a short-term funding bill already approved by the House. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer posted a video showing the countdown to midnight over the Capitol, blaming Republicans for refusing to protect health care. “We are going to keep fighting for the American people,” he said.
Essential services such as the military, Postal Service, Social Security, and food stamps will continue to operate. However, up to 750,000 federal workers could be furloughed without pay until the government reopens, according to the Congressional Budget Office.
This marks the first shutdown since the record 35-day closure nearly seven years ago, also during Trump’s presidency. Attempts at a last-minute deal, including a meeting at the White House earlier in the week, failed to make progress.
Although Congress regularly approaches funding deadlines, it typically avoids full shutdowns. But this time, with Democrats in the minority, they’ve tried to use their limited influence to push for restored health care funding, particularly for the Affordable Care Act programs aimed at low-income Americans.
President Trump’s threat of further job cuts has heightened anxiety among federal workers, already shaken by earlier mass firings under the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency, led by Elon Musk.
House Speaker Mike Johnson criticized Schumer on social media, asking how long he would allow the shutdown “for his own selfish reasons,” and pointed to the resulting pain for families and federal programs.
Former Vice President Kamala Harris also weighed in, noting that Republicans control both Congress and the White House, saying plainly: “This is their shutdown.”
In the Senate, a funding bill needs 60 votes to pass — more than Republicans currently hold. While they offered to extend funding into late November to allow time for further talks, Democrats opposed the plan because it did not include the restoration of key health care funding.
Just hours before the deadline, nearly all Senate Democrats voted against the House’s temporary funding proposal.
It remains uncertain how long this shutdown will persist. Since the current budget process was established in 1976, the federal government has shut down 21 times. The longest — 35 days — began in December 2018, also due to a standoff between Trump and Democrats over border wall funding.