The U.S. government will reopen after a 43-day shutdown that disrupted flights, paused SNAP benefits for about 42 million people and left over one million federal workers unpaid. The short-term agreement restores funding only through Jan. 30 and does not guarantee renewal of health insurance subsidies for some 24 million Americans. Public opinion is nearly split on who is to blame, and the CBO estimates roughly $50 billion in delayed spending and a 1.5-point hit to GDP, with about $14 billion likely unrecoverable.
Government Reopens After 43-Day Shutdown, But Deep Political Rift Remains
The U.S. government will reopen after a 43-day shutdown that disrupted flights, paused SNAP benefits for about 42 million people and left over one million federal workers unpaid. The short-term agreement restores funding only through Jan. 30 and does not guarantee renewal of health insurance subsidies for some 24 million Americans. Public opinion is nearly split on who is to blame, and the CBO estimates roughly $50 billion in delayed spending and a 1.5-point hit to GDP, with about $14 billion likely unrecoverable.
04:11 PM, 11/13/2025Politics
WASHINGTON — After a 43-day shutdown that became the longest in U.S. history, the federal government is set to resume operations on Thursday, ending disruptions that snarled air travel, paused food assistance for low-income households and left more than one million federal employees unpaid for weeks.
What the short-term deal does
The stopgap funding agreement restores operations through Jan. 30 and provides no binding solution to the expiring health insurance subsidies that helped trigger the shutdown. It also contains limited safeguards to prevent the president from withholding spending, a concern given repeated clashes between the executive branch and Congress over control of federal funds.
Political fallout and party divisions
The closure underscored deep partisan divisions and exposed strains within the Democratic caucus between progressives who demanded a hardline stance and moderates wary of risking broader losses while Republicans control key levers of power. Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, who voted against the deal, has faced criticism from some Democrats for how the party handled the standoff.
'The healthcare of the American people is a fight worth having,' Representative Hank Johnson of Georgia told Reuters, arguing Democrats rallied to spotlight rising insurance costs. Representative Brian Fitzpatrick, a Republican moderate, said, 'We ought to be legally prohibited from ever shutting down the government,' calling shutdowns an unacceptable lever for policy.
Immediate impacts on Americans
Air travel has begun to normalize after thousands of cancellations tied to high absenteeism among air traffic controllers. The U.S. Department of Agriculture said most states would receive funds to restore full SNAP benefits for about 42 million recipients within 24 hours of the reopening. Many federal employees who worked without pay will receive back pay under a 2019 law, though the White House signaled it might seek exceptions for some.
Economic cost and data gaps
The shutdown delayed the release of several economic indicators, complicating assessments by investors and the Federal Reserve. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimated roughly $50 billion in delayed federal spending and a 1.5 percentage-point reduction in U.S. GDP for the quarter, with up to $14 billion in economic activity likely unrecoverable.
What comes next
The temporary funding window sets the stage for another potential confrontation early next year. Democrats secured a promise of a Senate vote on health subsidies but won no binding guarantee that the subsidies will be extended or that the House will act. Public opinion showed no clear winner: a Reuters/Ipsos poll found 50% of Americans blamed Republicans for the shutdown and 47% blamed Democrats.
The episode also left broader fiscal questions untouched, including bipartisan inattention to rising federal debt, which currently stands near the $38 trillion mark and continues to grow by roughly $1.8 trillion a year under current trajectories.
(Reporting by Andy Sullivan, David Morgan, Bo Erickson and Nolan D. McCaskill; additional reporting by Leah Douglas; editing by Scott Malone and Edmund Klamann.)