The US federal government entered a shutdown early Wednesday after President Donald Trump and Congress failed to reach agreement on a budget, with negotiations breaking down over Democratic demands for health care funding.

 

The halt in operations, which affects multiple federal departments and agencies, comes amid deep partisan divisions in Washington. Both Republicans and Democrats quickly blamed each other for the deadlock, which threatens to impact hundreds of thousands of government employees and the millions of Americans who rely on public services.

 

President Trump warned of significant repercussions for Democrats and their supporters, suggesting that the pause could be used to eliminate programs he deemed unnecessary. "So we'd be laying off a lot of people that are going to be very affected. And they're Democrats, they're going to be Democrats," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. He added, "A lot of good can come down from shutdowns" and indicated that he would use the disruption to "get rid of a lot of things we didn't want, and they'd be Democrat things."

 

Government operations began shutting down at 12:01 AM (0401 GMT) after Senate attempts to approve a short-term funding bill failed, despite the House of Representatives having already passed it.

 

Top Senate Democrat Chuck Schumer posted a video on social media showing a clock counting down to midnight over the US Capitol. "The Republican shutdown has just begun because Republicans wouldn't protect America's health care," he said. "We are going to keep fighting for the American people."

 

Critical services such as the Postal Service, the military, and welfare programs, including Social Security and food stamps, will continue to operate. However, the Congressional Budget Office estimates that up to 750,000 federal workers could be sent home each day without pay until the shutdown ends.

 

This marks the first shutdown since the longest in US history, which lasted 35 days during Trump’s previous term nearly seven years ago.

 

Negotiations had shown little progress despite a last-ditch White House meeting on Monday. While Congress often faces tight deadlines to pass spending plans, shutdowns are usually avoided. Democrats, the minority in both chambers, have sought to leverage their position to restore funding for health care programs, particularly the Affordable Care Act for low-income Americans, which the Trump administration has sought to roll back.

 

Trump’s threat of further public sector job cuts has heightened anxiety among federal employees, following large-scale firings earlier this year under measures dubbed by some as government efficiency reforms.

 

Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson criticized Democrats on social media, writing, "How long will Chuck Schumer let this pain go on, for his own selfish reasons? Results: Moms and kids now lose WIC nutrition. Veterans lose health care and suicide prevention programs. FEMA has shortfalls during hurricane season. Soldiers and TSA agents go UNPAID."

 

Former Democratic vice president Kamala Harris also weighed in, noting that Republicans control both the White House and Congress. "This is their shutdown," she wrote.

 

Funding bills in the 100-member Senate require 60 votes for approval, seven more than the Republicans currently control. While Republicans had proposed a short-term extension until late November, Democrats insisted on restoring hundreds of billions in health care funding. Almost all Senate Democrats voted against the seven-week stop-gap measure passed by the House.

 

The duration of the shutdown remains uncertain. Since 1976, the federal government has experienced 21 shutdowns, with the longest beginning on December 22, 2018, over a dispute between Trump and Democrats concerning funding for a border wall.