U.S. government shuts down after congress fails to reach funding deal

The United States government has shut down for the first time in nearly seven years after Congress failed to secure a last-minute funding agreement, plunging federal agencies into uncertainty and forcing hundreds of thousands of workers into furlough.

The deadlock, which came to a head late Tuesday, means national parks, museums, and some federal offices will likely shutter, while air travel could face significant disruption due to staffing shortages.

Previous shutdowns have also seen delays at airports and interruptions to a range of public services.

Negotiations in the Senate went down to the wire but collapsed amid bitter partisan divisions. Despite frenetic talks, neither a Republican-backed stopgap funding bill nor a Democratic alternative secured the 60 votes needed to advance.

President Donald Trump, addressing reporters earlier in the day, escalated tensions by threatening sweeping job cuts and the removal of certain federal benefits, which he claimed were a “priority only for Democrats.”

With Republicans controlling both chambers of Congress, the party’s leadership had hoped to steer through a short-term spending measure. But dissent within its own ranks and unified Democratic opposition doomed the effort.

Democrats, for their part, accused Republicans of failing to present a credible plan that addressed broader fiscal and policy concerns.

“This is a shutdown made in Washington dysfunction,” said one Democratic senator after the vote.

Republicans countered that Democrats were using the budget process as leverage over unrelated issues, leaving ordinary Americans to bear the brunt.

The standoff leaves federal workers and citizens in limbo. Some agencies have begun notifying employees of unpaid leave, while others are preparing for closures that could last days—or even weeks—depending on how quickly lawmakers can return to the negotiating table.

The shutdown, the first since 2018, underscores the deepening political divisions in Washington. With no immediate compromise in sight, both parties are preparing to weather the political fallout, while millions of Americans brace for the impact on services they rely on daily.