The federal government has begun a gradual reopening process after President Trump signed a Republican-backed funding bill, bringing an end to the longest shutdown in U.S. history. Although the bill narrowly made its way through both houses of Congress, the situation remains far from routine.
Air travel is still experiencing significant disruptions, with hundreds of flights canceled and delayed. However, experts predict that operations will slowly return to normal, especially as the Thanksgiving holiday draws near.
Federal employees who were furloughed during the shutdown are set to return to their jobs in the coming days. They, along with essential workers such as air traffic controllers and airport security personnel—who worked without pay—are expected to receive compensation for the missed paychecks during the 43-day shutdown.
Millions of low-income individuals relying on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), who faced partial or no benefits in November, are anticipated to receive full payments soon.
The recently passed spending bill did not include measures to extend tax credits for Obamacare health insurance premiums. This was a key demand from Democrats that originally led to the shutdown on October 1. Consequently, over 20 million Americans are at risk of facing significantly higher premiums during the ongoing open enrollment period.
President Trump, currently facing low approval ratings, has placed the blame for the shutdown on the Democrats. However, public opinion polls suggest that the majority of Americans hold Trump and his Republican allies responsible for the standoff, citing their unwillingness to negotiate with the opposition party.
“I just want to tell the American people, you should not forget this,” Trump said Wednesday night at the White House. “When we come up to midterms and other things, don’t forget what they’ve done to our country.”
The signing ceremony with Republican lawmakers came just hours after the House passed the GOP measure on a mostly party-line vote of 222-209, with a handful of moderate Democrats including Long Island Rep. Tom Suozzi crossing the aisle to back the measure.
The Senate passed the measure Monday after a handful of Democrats effectively caved to Republican demands.
Democratic leaders vowed to keep fighting for an extension of the Obamacare subsidies with a vote expected in the Senate in December.
House lawmakers hope to force House Speaker Mike Johnson to permit a vote, which he has so far refused to do.
“This fight is not over,” said Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-New York), the minority leader. “We’re just getting started.”
The compromise funds three annual spending bills and extends the rest of government funding through the end of January, when another shutdown fight could take place.
The bill includes a reversal of the firing of federal workers by the Trump administration since the shutdown began. It also protects federal workers against further layoffs through January and guarantees they are paid once the shutdown is over.
It doesn’t force Trump to restore funding for infrastructure plans in Democratic states like the new Hudson River rail tunnel that the president vowed to cancel to punish Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-New York).
The bill for the U.S. Department of Agriculture means food assistance programs like SNAP and aid for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) will be funded without threat of interruption through the rest of the budget year that runs through September 2026.
The biggest point of partisan dispute remains the expiring enhanced tax credit that makes health insurance more affordable through marketplaces for the Affordable Care Act, the official name of Obamacare.
Some Republicans say they want to negotiate a compromise with Democrats. GOP leaders mostly oppose the credits and have fought for more than a decade to undermine or even repeal the ACA.
“All they have done is try to eliminate access to health care in our country. The country is catching on to them,” said Rep. Nancy Pelosi, the Democratic elder stateswoman who recently announced her retirement.
Without the tax credits, average premiums could more than double for millions of Americans. More than 2 million people would lose health insurance coverage altogether next year, the Congressional Budget Office projected.
