On Wednesday evening, November 12, President Trump signed a bill to reopen federal agencies, formally ending the 43-day shutdown. The move followed the House’s passage of a bipartisan funding package.
The signing brought an end to the longest government shutdown on record: for nearly seven weeks, thousands of federal employees went without pay, and public services across the country operated with significant disruptions. The funding package passed 222–209. Two Republicans—Thomas Massie (Kentucky) and Greg Steube (Florida)—joined most Democrats in voting against the bill. Six Democrats—Jared Golden (Maine), Adam Gray (California), Don Davis (North Carolina), Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (Washington), Tom Suozzi (New York) and Henry Cuellar (Texas)—voted in favor.
Before signing the bill, Trump, flanked by smiling Republicans including House Speaker Mike Johnson (Louisiana), said that shutting down the government is “no way to run a country.” He added: “I hope we can all agree that the government should never be shut down again.”
House Democratic leadership formally opposed the bill because it does not extend expiring Affordable Care Act subsidies. A circular distributed by the office of Deputy Democratic Whip Katherine Clark (Massachusetts) stated: “The package negotiated by the Senate does absolutely nothing to address the Republican-created health care crisis.”
House Democratic leadership formally opposed the bill because it does not extend expiring Affordable Care Act subsidies. A circular distributed by the office of Deputy Democratic Whip Katherine Clark (Massachusetts) stated: “The package negotiated by the Senate does absolutely nothing to address the Republican-created health care crisis.”
After 40 days, eight Democratic senators broke with their party and backed a bipartisan initiative to reopen the government. Their agreement with Senate Republicans rests on a pledge to hold a vote next month on extending Affordable Care Act subsidies. Yet the prospects for such a vote in the Senate are uncertain, and the House is unlikely to take it up at all. The move has angered many Democrats, with some calling on Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (New York) to resign.
Wednesday’s vote marked the House’s first session in 54 days. Lawmakers had been away for the entirety of the shutdown and had not reconvened since passing the last budget in September. The House is again leaving Washington this week, but lawmakers are expected to return next week to address a growing backlog of unresolved issues.
The bill to reopen the government includes a provision ending the sale of several THC-containing products.