The U.S. government has shut down 21 times since 1977, with Congress continuously setting records for the longest fiscal standoffs. The current government shutdown, which has lasted nearly a month into fiscal year (FY) 2026, shows no signs of resolution, with Democrats and Republicans deeply divided over federal spending. The impasse has led to a significant impact, with hundreds of thousands of federal workers furloughed and thousands laid off, while federal services have also been put on hold due to a lack of funding.
Historically, this situation is not unprecedented. The longest shutdown in U.S. history occurred during the first Trump administration and lasted five weeks. The dispute was over funding for President Donald Trump’s border wall, which he refused to sign a federal spending deal without. A standalone bill requesting $5.7 billion for the wall was blocked by a Senate Democrat-led filibuster. Eventually, Trump backed a short-term funding measure to reopen the government on Jan. 25, 2019, and a deal was reached a few weeks later for $1.375 billion for 55 miles of border fencing between the U.S. and Mexico.
The current government shutdown now holds the title of the second-longest in history, and the longest-ever full shutdown. This indicates that Congress was unable to reach a deal on any appropriations bills before the end of FY 2025 on Sept. 30. Republicans, who control the House and Senate, had proposed a seven-week extension of FY 2025 spending levels to provide more time for negotiations. This measure passed the House on Sept. 19 with support from one Democrat but has stalled in the Senate 12 times so far.
Democrats are pushing for any federal funding plan to also include an extension of the pandemic-era enhanced Obamacare subsidies, which are set to expire at the end of the year. However, as of the latest count, at least five more Senate Democrats are needed to overcome a filibuster and pass the measure in the Senate. Meanwhile, Republican leaders are resisting the inclusion of unrelated issues, accusing Democrats of trying to force an unrelated issue into the year’s funding process.
A similar issue emerged during the second-longest government shutdown under Bill Clinton, which lasted three weeks, breaking records at the time. The standoff occurred when Republicans, who had taken control of both the House and Senate after the 1994 midterms, pushed for significant budget cuts. Clinton, who also sought a balanced budget, opposed these cuts. This was a partial shutdown, with the departments of energy, defense, and agriculture among those that were funded before the impasse began.
The longest shutdown of former President Jimmy Carter’s term lasted 18 days. The situation arose as Democrats controlled all levers of power. Carter had vetoed Congress’ bills on defense spending and public works, including funding for a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, and there was also a dispute over abortion in the funding bill for the then-defunct Department of Health, Education, and Welfare.
The current crisis mirrors the 2013 shutdown, which also centered around Obamacare. The shutdown was the second-longest full shutdown, behind the current crisis, and at that time, Republicans controlled the House, while Democrats held the Senate. The GOP insisted on spending bills that rolled back significant portions of Obamacare, but Senate Democrats rejected these measures. Eventually, Congress agreed to a short-term spending patch to end the shutdown, and Republicans relented on pushing for funding bills with Obamacare cuts.