Trump signs… 43-day shutdown ends, millions of Americans breathe a sigh of relief

New Delhi: Donald Trump has relented, and with it, the longest government shutdown in US history is coming to an end after nearly 43 days. On Wednesday night, the Senate passed a bill ending the shutdown by a vote of 222-209. The White House has also confirmed that Donald Trump has signed the bill. Government operations will now officially resume. This is not only good news for America’s GDP, but also a major relief for over 40 million Americans.

Why was the shutdown imposed?
First, let’s explain how this prolonged shutdown came about in the US. So, understand that the reason for this was the inability to reach a consensus on a government spending bill in the US Senate. Senate members rejected it 14 times, leading to a US shutdown. According to reports, the shutdown is now ending without a resolution on healthcare subsidies, a key demand from Democrats. President Trump had to compromise on this issue.

Flights Disrupted, Economic Data Stalled
The US shutdown has been at a standstill for the past six weeks, but it will still take time to resolve the problems it has caused. Airlines were disrupted by the US shutdown, food aid was delayed, and US economic data also appeared to be stagnant.

Reports quoted Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy as saying that it could take up to a week to lift flight restrictions and fully restore airport operations. Meanwhile, Delta Airlines CEO Ed Bastian warned that flight cancellations due to the shutdown have severely impacted airline revenues. However, he expressed hope that operations would return to normal by Thanksgiving.

GDP losses for millions of Americans
The economic damage of the shutdown in the US was significant. The Congressional Budget Office estimated that it would reduce fourth-quarter GDP growth by 1.5%. However, this may improve somewhat now that federal programs are restarted and pending salaries are released.

Although the shutdown has now ended after Trump relented and signed the funding bill passed by the House, the damage has already been done. In particular, the 42 million Americans directly dependent on food stamps lost their November benefits. Many states say it may take time to reinstate aid, and these people may have to wait another week for assistance.

‘It was foolish and pointless’
Seven Senate Democrats and one independent member, along with Republicans, passed the funding bill in exchange for a Senate vote on subsidies by mid-December. House Speaker Mike Johnson has made no commitment to bringing it to the lower chamber. However, Johnson stated sternly, “As we’ve said from the beginning, this shutdown was ultimately completely foolish and pointless.”