A Historic U.S. Government Shutdown Ends

The U.S. government shutdown ended after a record 43-days when President Donald Trump signed a government funding bill on Wednesday. 

The shutdown caused great stress and confusion for the American people, were federal workers were furloughed or laid off, air traffic slowed down and food aid for millions of people where stopped or delayed. 

The division between Congressional Republicans and Democrats were harsh, where many Democrats wanted to continue the shutdown to gain to extend an enhanced tax credit expiring at the end of the year that lowers the cost of health coverage obtained through Affordable Care Act marketplaces. Without it, premiums on average will more than double for millions of Americans, and more than two million people would lose health insurance coverage altogether next year, the Congressional Budget Office projected.

However, eight Congressional Democrats and Independents brokered a deal with Senate Republicans this week that started the ball rolling to end the shutdown.

"We wanted to find a bipartisan path forward to enact a spending agreement that actually meets the needs of the American people, but we could not support a partisan Republican spending bill that continues to gut the healthcare of the American people," House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said on MSNBC on Thursday. 

The shutdown and the fact that six Democrats broke away from the party also revived division within the Democratic Party. Many criticized Brooklyn Congressman Chuck Schumer for not being able to carry out the party's ultimate goal for the shutdown and allowing for a breakaway group to negotiate with the Republicans.

Jeffries said the House and Senate Democrats "are aligned" in continuing to press the case to save the healthcare of the American people and would work to not allow Congress to be in the same situation on Jan. 31, 2026, when the funding bill expires. 

The shutdown also caused Trump's approval rating to drop. Only three in 10 adults approve of the president's handling of the economy, health care or the federal government, which includes a reduced approval among Republicans, according to a poll released from the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.

Republicans chose dysfunction over delivering for the American people, Governor Kathy Hochul said in a statement.

"And now their bill ends the shutdown at the direct expense of working families who face devastating premium hikes and higher health care costs," she said. "New York’s seven Republicans in Congress need to put their constituents first and extend Affordable Care Act tax credits in the new year. New Yorkers deserve leaders who show up and fight for them. I’ll keep fighting every day to make life more affordable.”