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President Donald Trump signed a bill on Wednesday to end the longest government shutdown in U.S. history — a span of 43 days that stalled Washington and left hundreds of thousands of employees without pay while Republicans and Democrats engaged in a tense blame game.
The Republican-majority House of Representatives largely voted along party lines to endorse a Senate-approved package to reopen federal departments and agencies, as many Democrats expressed anger over what they perceived as a surrender by party leaders.
Trump criticised Democrats as he affixed his signature to the bill in the Oval Office later, urging Americans to keep the disorder in mind when voting in the fiercely contested U.S. midterm elections next year.
“Today we are sending a clear message that we will never give in to extortion,” said Trump, surrounded by gleeful Republican lawmakers, including House Speaker Mike Johnson.
The package funds military construction, veterans’ affairs, the Department of Agriculture, and Congress itself through next fall, while the remainder of the government is funded through the end of January.
Approximately 670,000 furloughed federal employees will return to work, and a comparable number who remained on the job without pay — including over 60,000 air traffic controllers and airport security personnel will receive back pay.
The agreement also reinstates federal workers whom Trump terminated during the shutdown, while air travel across the nation will slowly start to normalise.
Trump inaccurately accused Democrats of costing the nation $1.5 trillion. Though the total financial impact of the shutdown has yet to be assessed, the Congressional Budget Office estimates it has led to a $14 billion loss in economic growth.
For over five weeks, Democrats remained steadfast in their refusal to reopen the government unless Trump consented to extend pandemic-related tax credits that made health insurance accessible for millions of Americans.
Recent election victories in several states gave Democrats increased motivation and a newfound sense of purpose.
However, a group of eight moderate senators broke off to negotiate a deal with Republicans, which includes a vote in the Senate on healthcare subsidies, but without time allotted in the House and without assurance of action.
Democrats are now facing a challenging reassessment of how their firm stance faltered without securing any significant victories.
