The U.S. government has entered a partial shutdown after Congress and the White House failed to reach a deal before Wednesday’s midnight deadline. The collapse of negotiations highlights deep partisan divides that show no signs of narrowing.
Roughly 750,000 federal workers are expected to be furloughed. Many could face permanent layoffs as the Trump administration pushes forward with a plan to downsize the federal workforce.
Essential services such as the Pentagon and parts of the Department of Homeland Security will remain operational. Active-duty military personnel will continue working but without pay, while members of Congress will keep their salaries.
But many other government functions, including the release of the September jobs report, federal research, and various public services, will halt or face severe delays.
The shutdown began after Senate Democrats rejected a short-term spending measure known as a continuing resolution. That bill had passed the House largely along party lines and would have extended government funding through Nov. 21. Lawmakers would then have had more time to negotiate a longer-term agreement.
Democrats opposed the measure because it did not include an extension of enhanced health care subsidies under the Affordable Care Act. Those subsidies are set to expire at the end of the year.
Republicans argued that Democrats were holding the government hostage over a single issue. They demanded that healthcare funding be addressed separately.
“There isn’t any substantive reason why there ought to be a government shutdown,” said Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD). “This is something that has been done routinely, as I said, 13 different times when the Democrats had the majority. But we are not going to be held hostage for over $1 trillion in new spending on a continuing resolution.”
President Trump explained that Republicans did not seek a shutdown. But he warned that Democrats could face consequences. “We can do things during the shutdown that are irreversible, that are bad for them and irreversible by them, like cutting vast numbers of people out, cutting things that they like, cutting programs that they like,” he said.
The White House has already indicated it will use the shutdown to pursue its goal of significantly reducing the size of the federal government.
The shutdown is the 15th since 1981 and comes amid a broader battle over $1.7 trillion in discretionary spending. That figure represents roughly one-quarter of the federal budget for fiscal year 2026. The remaining three-quarters of spending go toward mandatory programs like Social Security and Medicare, as well as interest payments on the $37.5 trillion national debt.
The political stakes are high. Democrats, under pressure from their base ahead of the 2026 midterm elections, see the funding battle as a chance to secure key policy victories. They also want to block parts of Trump’s second-term agenda. Republicans, who control both chambers of Congress but still need Democratic votes in the Senate, argue that Democrats are overreaching and risking economic fallout.
The economic consequences could be significant. The Congressional Budget Office estimates the furloughs will cost about $400 million per day in lost compensation. Financial markets reacted cautiously. Wall Street futures slipped, and gold prices hit a record high amid concerns about delayed data and broader economic uncertainty.
Many federal offices will remain shuttered indefinitely. Public-facing institutions such as the Capitol Visitor Center, the Botanic Garden, and the Library of Congress will close to visitors. Smithsonian museums are expected to remain open through the weekend. But national parks could face closure due to safety concerns tied to reduced staffing.
This shutdown marks a dramatic start to a new phase of political conflict in Washington. Neither side is offering a clear exit strategy. “Democrats did not want a shutdown. We stand ready to work with Republicans to find a bipartisan compromise, and the ball is in their court,” said Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY).
But with Trump signaling an aggressive approach and Democrats unwilling to retreat on healthcare funding, the stalemate shows few signs of ending soon.
As the government grinds to a halt, millions of Americans who rely on federal programs and services face growing uncertainty. And many now worry that this shutdown could stretch on far longer than those of the past.