Crisis of Shutdown in America: Work Comes to a Halt – What is a Shutdown?

In Brief

• Shutdown of Trump's government operations

• What is Shutdown?

• What will be the impact of the Shutdown?

The American Senate adjourned on Tuesday evening without approving any funding resolution, resulting in a shutdown of Trump's (Donald Trump) government operations. With the halt in government work, millions of government employees will temporarily not receive their salaries. It could also affect the distribution of social security and other benefits. Now, what is a shutdown? Let's learn about its consequences...

Republican lawmakers had proposed a bill to provide temporary funding to the government until November 21, but it could not be approved. Democratic lawmakers opposed the bill, after which government funding was halted for the first time in Trump's second term, and the shutdown began. On Tuesday evening, a vote was held on the funding bill, which could not be approved by a margin of 55-45. The ruling Republican Party needed at least 60 votes to pass the bill.

What is a shutdown?

The fiscal year in the United States begins on October 1st. At the start of the fiscal year, the government prepares a budget and decides where to allocate government funds. If the U.S. Congress does not approve the bill to fund the federal government by the deadline, government operations shut down. Such tensions over the budget are common in American politics, and on many occasions, the operations of the American government have come to a halt due to the failure to pass funding bills.

What is the entire controversy?

President Trump's administration is cutting federal government spending, and several steps have been taken in recent months to reduce federal government expenditure. However, there are disagreements between the ruling Republican Party and the opposing Democratic Party regarding the Obama healthcare subsidy program. Democratic lawmakers want to increase the Obama healthcare subsidy, but the Republican Party is not ready for it. This is why consensus on the funding bill could not be reached. Discussions took place between the government and opposition parties to stop the shutdown, but consensus could not be achieved.

What will be the impact of the shutdown?

In America, a shutdown means the government has no money to spend. This results in the halt of all government expenses, including the salaries of government employees. All services, except for emergency services like medical services, border security, and air services, can be disrupted. In the last 50 years, there have been 20 shutdowns in America.

The largest shutdown in 2019 lasted 35 days. Due to the shutdown, approximately 750,000 federal employees had to work without pay, disrupting many essential services. The shutdown will also halt American government food aid programs, federally funded schools, student loans, and national parks. The shutdown will also impact the American economy, and experts believe it could reduce America's economic growth by 0.1 to 0.2 percent each week.