Editor’s note: A previous version of this article misstated the year in which the second shutdown under President Trump happened. We regret the error.
(NEXSTAR) – The federal government shutdown, which began Wednesday, marks the 21st such closure in 50 years. Most of those shutdowns have lasted less than a week, but the longest in U.S. history was over a month long.
It wasn’t that long ago when the record was broken. It was actually the most recent federal government shutdown in late 2018 and early 2019 that endured for 35 days, easily becoming the longest our country had seen.
The shutdown was triggered in President Donald Trump’s first term, when the president demanded money for a U.S.-Mexico border wall. Then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi refused to negotiate on the issue unless the government was allowed to reopen. Democrats had won the House majority in the 2018 election and took power in the middle of the partial shutdown.
As the shutdown dragged on, airport delays intensified and hundreds of thousands of federal workers were furloughed, their pay delayed. After 35 days, Trump agreed to a three-week funding bill that didn’t include border wall funds.
This is the fourth government shutdown to occur under President Trump, but the first of his second term. While the 2019 shutdown was 35 days long, the others – both in 2018 – lasted several hours and three days, respectively.
Why is there a government shutdown?
Under President Barack Obama, a 2013 shutdown lasted 17 days, and under President Bill Clinton, a 1996 shutdown went on for three weeks. There were no federal government shutdowns under President George W. Bush.
How long this shutdown will last remains to be seen. Vice President JD Vance said Wednesday he didn’t believe it would be “that long a shutdown,” suggesting some Democrats may be “cracking” and breaking with party leadership.
At the heart of the current debate to fund the government is the issue of health care subsidies. Democrats say if tax subsidies are allowed to expire, like they are set to do at the end of the year, health care costs will skyrocket for 22 million Americans. Republicans say Democrats should agree to a temporary stopgap funding bill, and then they’ll consider negotiating on the subsidies.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
