The unprecedented government closure stretches back to late December 2018, when President Donald Trump declared a budget impasse with Congress over his proposed border wall. The budget stalemate caused the government to partially shut down, leading to the longest such stoppage in U.S. history.
The shutdown has lasted for more than three months, with no end in sight. President Trump is still insisting on his wall, while Democrats in the House have refused to budge from their opposition. The two sides remain strongly at odds, and over 800,000 federal workers have gone without pay for over a month.
The situation has been made worse by the recent polar vortex that paralyzed parts of the Midwest and East Coast. With federal workers still going unpaid, many are being forced to find other means of providing for their families. The situation has also created massive backlogs in many areas, including immigration and the IRS.
The shutdown has been highly detrimental to the economy as a whole, with many small businesses and contractors having to close their doors due to a lack of funding. It’s unclear when the shutdown will end, or how it will be resolved. Hopefully, the two sides will eventually be able to come to an agreement that will end this humiliating and damaging episode in our nation’s history.
