The U.S. government shutdown continues, the first time since the first Trump administration, more than a month after Republican and Democratic lawmakers failed to find a solution to their budget standoff.
Many, but not all, U.S. government services are temporarily suspended, and all 1.4 million federal employees are on unpaid leave or working without pay.
Republicans and Democrats failed to agree to pass a bill funding government services past Oct. 1, when the previous federal budget expired. In the U.S., Congress must agree to a spending plan and send it to the president to be signed into law.
The Republicans currently control both chambers of Congress; however, in the Senate, they are short of the 60 votes needed to pass the spending bill.
Democrats want the bill to include an extension of expiring tax credits that make health insurance cheaper, according to BBC News. They are also aiming for a reversal of President Trump’s cuts to Medicaid, a government healthcare programme heavily used by the elderly and those with a low-income.
Republicans responded saying they want to negotiate the health insurance subsidies and only pass what they call a “clean resolution,” as stated by BBC News.
Ending the shutdown requires the two parties in the Senate to find a compromise that Trump will sign. Several votes aimed at reopening the government have failed.
Not all aspects of the government stop during a shutdown, but most staff are not paid until the government reopens.
Border protection and law enforcement staff and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents are expected to operate as usual.
Services that are not deemed essential are shut down until further notice. Employees of ongoing research projects at agencies like the National Institutes of Health are placed on leave.
The Trump administration says it will restart SNAP food benefits but it will pay out only half the amount people typically get, according to NPR.
The administration will use money from an Agriculture Department contingency fund. The administration says only $4.65 billion will be available to pay for SNAPS, which is only half of the usual $8 million in food assistance payments.
Although government shutdowns pre-date Trump, the longest government shutdown occurred during Trump’s first term. It began in late December 2018 and lasted for 35 days. It was brought about by disagreements over funding the Mexican border wall. The shutdown ended because multiple air traffic controllers, who had been working without pay, began calling in sick. This has started to happen during the current shutdown.
Multiple sources and government agencies expect this shutdown to surpass the previous one. As of Nov. 3, the current shutdown is at day 34.
