What is a US Government Shutdown?

The United States is headed for another government shutdown after the lower house of Congress failed to pass a spending bill to keep federal agencies open.

The funding is set to expire at midnight Friday unless Republicans and Democrats can agree on a way forward.

Here’s a breakdown of how we got here and what it means for Americans—and for Donald Trump.

Many federal government agencies depend on annual funding approved by Congress.

Each year, these agencies submit their requests for Congress to pass and the President to sign into law the budget for the next fiscal year.

If no agreement is reached, all non-essential, discretionary functions of the US government will cease.

In September, both parties agreed on a bill to keep state aid until 20 December.

This week, three days before lawmakers were to go on vacation, House Speaker Mike Johnson, Republican, released a bill to extend the funding through March.

It was agreed to by Democratic leadership, but included some measures like a pay raise for lawmakers that made some Republicans unhappy.

Tech billionaire Elon Musk, an ally of Trump, aired his opposition to it, and then the president-elect signaled that he wanted his party to kill it, which is what happened.

A second, slimmed-down bill reached the floor Thursday night, but failed to garner enough votes to pass.

If no deal is reached by midnight, the US will have its first shutdown since early 2019.

Essential workers continue as normal, some of them without pay, while government employees deemed non-essential are put on temporary unpaid leave.

Border protection, hospital treatment, law enforcement and air traffic control will continue to operate.

But services like the food assistance program, federally funded preschool, student loan issuance and food inspections, and national parks will be curtailed or closed.

While Social Security and Medicare checks are being mailed, benefit verification and card issuance stops.

There may also be travel delays if the stand-off drags on.

“An extended shutdown could mean longer wait times at airports,” Transportation Security Administration spokesman Carter Langston said.

The Tesla boss has been tasked with identifying spending cuts by helping to lead the proposed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

It is not an official ministry, but he has promised to find $2tn in savings.

On Wednesday, he made dozens of posts on X, the platform he owns, expressing his distaste for Mike Johnson’s bill.

He reinforced some false statements about what was in the bill, calling it criminal and scandalous.

After Musk beat up the opposition, Trump and JD Vance, the incoming vice president, delivered the final blow to Johnson’s deal that evening.

They said in a joint statement that they wanted streamlined legislation without the Democratic-backed provisions that Johnson had included.

They also called on Congress to raise or eliminate the debt ceiling, which determines how much the government can borrow to pay its bills.

Johnson has promised to find a solution by Friday, so there will be plenty of bickering on Capitol Hill as the clock ticks down.

But to get the support required in the House to pass, he needs Democratic votes.

Democrats say they will only support the original bill, which Trump and Musk opposed.

If no agreement is reached, US federal agencies will shut down at midnight.

Quite common. President Ronald Reagan oversaw eight shutdowns during his tenure — though all were relatively brief.

And there were three when Donald Trump was president, including the longest in history at 36 days, which ended in January 2019.

It happened because of a disagreement about the financing of a wall on the border with Mexico.

Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimated that it reduced economic output with around 11 billion $, including 3 billion $, which it never recovered.

Shutdowns over budgets are almost unique to American politics.

Under the American system, the various branches of government must agree on spending plans before they can become law.

In most countries, budget votes turn into votes of confidence in the government itself. But because the United States has equal and often divided branches of government, this is not the case.

Also known as the debt limit, this is a law that limits the total amount the government can borrow to pay its bills.

This includes payment for federal employees, the military, Social Security and Medicare, as well as interest on the national debt and tax refunds.

Every once in a while, the US Congress votes to raise or suspend the ceiling so it can borrow more.

Trump adding that condition to the deal was an unexpected demand that has made it harder for right-wing Republicans, who often object to increased government spending, to support the bill.

The debt ceiling was to be raised in the coming months regardless of the efficiency efforts that were promised.

But by demanding that happen now, some analysts believe Trump is signaling the costs of his proposed tax cuts, and tighter border restrictions will test the ceiling limits. And he prefers that the fight over the rise happen before he takes office.

Democrats usually favor raising the debt ceiling without strings attached, but they are in no mood to help Republicans now.

The risk for Trump is that the mini-insurgency chip away at the mantle of invincibility he has worn since the election.

And it raises questions about how smoothly his party will be able to deliver on campaign promises that require legislation.