President Donald Trump on Wednesday signed legislation officially ending the longest government shutdown in U.S. history, which lasted 43 days and left hundreds of thousands of federal workers unpaid. The shutdown had paralyzed Washington as Republicans and Democrats engaged in a high-stakes standoff.
The Republican-led House of Representatives approved the Senate-passed funding package, largely along party lines, despite frustration among Democrats who criticized their leadership for conceding too much.
Speaking in the Oval Office, Trump accused Democrats of extortion and urged Americans to remember the shutdown in next year’s midterm elections. “Today we are sending a clear message that we will never give in to extortion,” he said, flanked by Republican lawmakers, including House Speaker Mike Johnson.
The funding package restores operations for military construction, veterans’ affairs, the Department of Agriculture, and Congress through the fall, while funding the rest of the government until the end of January. Approximately 670,000 furloughed federal employees will return to work, while another 670,000 who remained on duty without pay—including air traffic controllers and airport security staff—will receive back pay. The deal also reinstates federal workers who had been fired during the shutdown.
Trump estimated the shutdown cost the country $1.5 trillion, a figure widely disputed by economists. The Congressional Budget Office estimates the economic loss at around $14 billion.
Political Fallout
House Republicans, with a slim majority of just two votes, faced pressure to deliver a resolution. Moderate senators brokered a deal allowing a Senate vote on extending pandemic-era health care tax credits, though no guarantee was offered in the House.
Democrats are grappling with internal divisions, with some criticizing party leaders for failing to secure tangible policy gains. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries emphasized that the party successfully elevated the health care issue nationally and intends to continue pushing it ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has also faced backlash from progressives, while high-profile Democratic figures outside Washington—including California Governor Gavin Newsom and Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker—criticized the agreement as insufficient. Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg labeled it a “bad deal.”
As operations resume, air travel disrupted during the shutdown is expected to gradually normalize, and federal agencies return to full functionality, ending the longest funding stalemate in U.S. history.
