The United States government shutdown became the longest in the country’s history this week, entering its 38th day on Saturday with no deal in sight and airlines cutting flights at the nation’s busiest airports.
The funding lapse, which began on 1 October after Congress failed to pass spending legislation, has passed the 35-day record set during the shutdown of December 2018 to January 2019. It is now the longest shutdown since the modern budget process began.
The Senate failed for a 14th time on 4 November to advance the House-passed stopgap bill that would fund the government at current levels through 21 November. The procedural vote fell 54–44, short of the 60 votes needed, with two Democrats and one independent voting to proceed and one Republican voting against.
Democrats have refused to back a short-term funding bill that does not extend health insurance subsidies under the Affordable Care Act, which are due to expire at the end of the year. Republicans insist on a “clean” continuing resolution with no policy additions, and say negotiations on the subsidies can wait until the government reopens.
The shutdown’s effects are now reaching deep into everyday life. The Federal Aviation Administration has ordered airlines to cut flights at 40 of the busiest airports, starting at 4 per cent of domestic flights on Friday and rising to 10 per cent by 14 November if the impasse continues. The order, announced by Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, is a safety measure: about 13,000 air traffic controllers and 50,000 security screeners have worked without pay since 1 October, and staffing shortages have grown.
Food aid has also been caught in the standoff. Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits, which support about 42 million Americans, were halted on 1 November. A federal judge in Rhode Island has ordered the administration to pay November benefits in full, using contingency funds.
The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that a shutdown lasting eight weeks could cost the US economy about $14 billion. About 750,000 federal workers have been furloughed, while others deemed essential continue to work without pay.
With the next funding deadline of 21 November approaching and neither side showing signs of movement, the shutdown looks set to stretch further into November, and the flight cuts, food aid delays and missed pay cheques are likely to worsen before it ends.
Sources: Nationwide Wire — https://nationwire.us/faa-orders-flight-cuts-40-airports-shutdown/ ; The Now / Distortion Daily — https://distortion-daily.org/now.html ; National Low Income Housing Coalition — https://mailchi.mp/nlihc/cta_government_shutdown_110625?e=791d028d32
