President Donald Trump has officially signed a spending bill that will reopen the federal government, bringing an end to the longest shutdown in the history of the United States. The president signed the short term budget into law on Wednesday night, just a few hours after the House of Representatives voted 222 to 209 to approve the measure. The Senate had narrowly passed the same package two days earlier.
Speaking from the Oval Office, President Trump said that the government would now “resume normal operations.” He acknowledged that “people were hurt so badly” by the 43 day shutdown. Since October, many government services had been closed, and about 1.4 million federal employees were either on unpaid leave or had been working without receiving their paychecks. The shutdown also left food aid programs in a state of uncertainty and caused major disruptions to air travel across the country.
Government Services to Resume in Coming Days
With the new bill signed into law, government services are expected to start reopening over the next few days. The disruptions to air travel are also likely to get better just before the busy Thanksgiving holiday. The Federal Aviation Administration, or FAA, had been forced to reduce air traffic because of staff shortages caused by the shutdown.
The travel problems had a direct impact on some members of Congress who were trying to get to Washington D.C. for the important House vote on Wednesday. One Wisconsin Republican, Derrick Van Orden, had to ride his motorcycle for nearly 1,000 miles to make it to the capital in time to cast his vote.
The new bill is only a temporary fix. It provides funding to keep the government open until January 30. At that point, lawmakers will once again have to find a way to fund the government and avoid another shutdown. Before signing the bill, President Trump repeatedly blamed the Democratic Party for causing the shutdown. “They did it purely for political reasons,” he said. He also added, “When we come up to midterms and other things, don’t forget what they’ve done to our country.”
How the Shutdown Standoff Was Resolved
The shutdown was triggered because Senate Democrats, despite being in the minority, were able to block a funding bill. The Republicans were seven votes short of the 60 vote majority needed to pass the bill, which gave the Democrats negotiating power. The Democrats initially refused to support the bill because they wanted Republicans to agree to extend health insurance subsidies for low income Americans. These subsidies are scheduled to expire at the end of the year.
The Republicans argued that the discussion about healthcare could happen after the government was reopened. The standoff was finally broken on Sunday when a group of eight Senate Democrats voted with the Republicans to pass the spending package. They agreed to vote for the bill in exchange for a promise that there would be a vote on the healthcare subsidies in December.
This compromise caused anger within the Democratic Party. High profile figures like House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and California Governor Gavin Newsom publicly criticized the deal. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said the package “fails to do anything of substance to fix America’s healthcare crisis.”
However, Virginia Senator Tim Kaine, who was one of the Democrats who voted for the compromise, defended the decision. He said that the federal workers he represents were “saying thank you” for reaching a deal to end the shutdown.
What Is Included in the New Spending Deal?
The deal that was negotiated over the weekend will fund the federal government until January 30. It also includes full year funding for the Department of Agriculture, as well as funding for military construction projects and legislative agencies.
Importantly, the bill guarantees that all federal workers will receive back pay for the time they were out of work during the shutdown. It also includes funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, until next September. This program provides food aid to one in eight Americans. Finally, the package includes the agreement for a vote in December on extending the healthcare subsidies that the Democrats had been fighting for.
