The U.S. government is working to resume operations after the longest shutdown in the country’s history, which has disrupted air traffic, cut food aid to low-income Americans, and forced more than a million workers to go without pay for more than a month. However, the deep political divisions that caused the 43-day lockdown remain unresolved.
The funding package contains few restrictions to prevent President Donald Trump from withholding spending in an administration that has repeatedly challenged Congress’ constitutional authority over the money. Nor does it address health care subsidies that are about to expire, culminating in the impasse that led to the shutdown.
The shutdown also exposed divisions within the Democratic Party, between its progressive base, which has demanded that leaders do whatever is necessary to contain Trump, and moderates, who feel their options are limited while Republicans maintain majorities in both chambers of Congress. Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer is facing calls to resign despite voting against the deal.
It does not appear that either side has emerged a clear winner. A Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted on Wednesday showed that 50% of Americans blame Republicans for the shutdown, while 47% blame Democrats.
A return to normalcy may be short-lived because the agreement only funds the government until January 30, raising the possibility of another lockdown early next year.
The shutdown put Democrats in an unusual position, as Republicans have often been the side that shuts down funding in recent decades.
The shutdown was also notable for what had been largely absent: discussion of the $38 trillion national debt, which Congress is currently allowing to continue on a growth path of about $1.8 trillion annually.
Democrats said the economy-wide chaos, including the disruption of federal benefits and delayed wages for federal workers, is worth the effort to draw attention to the impending rise in health insurance prices for about 24 million Americans.
“The health of the American people is a battle worth fighting, and I’m proud that Democrats have stood together for so long to fight this fight,” Rep. Hank Johnson of Georgia told Reuters. He added, “The American people are more aware of the great risks in this battle… They realize how dangerous the situation is, and that is why they want us to continue fighting.”
Democrats did not guarantee health care subsidies, just a promise that the Republican-controlled Senate would vote on the issue, with no guarantees it would pass or even a House vote.
But they claimed they were able to raise the issue at a time when polls show that Americans are concerned about rising costs of living, and that Republicans could face political retaliation if they do not act to stop rising insurance costs. The benefits disproportionately benefit residents of Republican-controlled states.
Meanwhile, Republicans found themselves making the arguments Democrats often used during shutdowns: that the damage from the power outages wasn’t worth it.
“We should be legally prohibited from shutting down the government,” moderate Republican Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick told Reuters. He added: “It is absolutely crazy, crazy that we are now using a government shutdown as political leverage. This could never happen, and it is clearly a terrible precedent.”
The country’s air transport system has begun to return to normal, after thousands of flights were canceled due to a high rate of absenteeism among air traffic controllers.
And 42 million Americans will no longer have to worry about whether the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits that help them pay for groceries will run out. A USDA spokesperson said most states will receive funds for full SNAP benefits within 24 hours of the government reopening.
The shutdown forced hundreds of thousands of federal employees to continue working without pay, while others deemed nonessential were ordered not to work. They are entitled to retroactive wages under the 2019 law, although the Trump White House has threatened to withhold payment from some.
Trump also tried to lay off thousands of federal employees during the shutdown, making good on his threat to target domestic programs favored by Democrats.
The deal that ended the shutdown allows those workers to keep their jobs and pauses Trump’s broader downsizing campaign through the end of January. Trump is on track to cut the civil service from 2.2 million people to 300,000 by the end of the year.
The lockdown has prevented the government from publishing a range of economic data, forcing investors and the Federal Reserve (Fed) to operate blindly as they try to assess the state of the world’s largest economy.
This also has consumers worried ahead of the holiday shopping season. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimated that this would delay spending about $50 billion and reduce U.S. gross domestic product by 1.5 percentage points. The Congressional Budget Office said the economy will largely recover when the shutdown ends, although as much as $14 billion in lost activity will not be recovered.
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