Washington (TDI): President Donald Trump on Wednesday signed a bipartisan measure bringing an end to the longest government shutdown in US history, a 43-day standoff that left hundreds of thousands of federal employees without pay and disrupted vital public services.
The House of Representatives approved the funding package just two hours earlier by a 222–209 vote, paving the way for Trump’s signature. The bill restores operations for key departments, reactivates food aid, and reopens the air-traffic control network that had been under severe strain.
The measure had cleared the Senate earlier this week, and Trump’s endorsement helped keep most Republicans aligned behind the deal, despite fierce opposition from Democrats. Many Democrats were frustrated that weeks of deadlock had failed to secure an extension of federal health-insurance subsidies, one of their central demands.
Under the agreement, the government will remain funded through January 30, while continuing to add roughly $1.8 trillion annually to the already staggering $38 trillion national debt. Federal employees affected by the shutdown are expected to return to work as early as Thursday, though officials have not given a firm timeline for when all operations will be fully restored.
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The agreement came just over a week after Democrats notched a series of election victories they believed would strengthen their leverage on healthcare. While the bill sets up a Senate vote in December on whether to extend health-insurance subsidies set to expire at year’s end, House Speaker Mike Johnson has made no such commitment.
Democratic Representative Mikie Sherrill of New Jersey, who is set to resign next week after being elected governor, delivered an emotional farewell speech opposing the bill.
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“To my colleagues, Do not let this House become a rubber stamp for an administration that takes food away from children and strips people of healthcare,” she said. “To the country, stand strong, as we say in the Navy, don’t give up the ship.”
