Longest Government Shutdown in U.S. History: 35 Days Over Border Wall Funding

Overview

Trump shut down the federal government for 35 days — the longest in U.S. history — demanding $5.7 billion for a border wall. He reopened the government 35 days later without receiving the wall funding. The policy goal was not achieved. The shutdown was not a negotiating success.

What it was, for 800,000 federal workers, was a financial crisis.

The Federal Workers

Essential workers were required to show up. Air traffic controllers kept planes in the air. TSA officers screened passengers at airports. Coast Guard personnel maintained maritime operations. Federal law enforcement agents continued their duties. They did this for weeks without receiving paychecks.

Many lived paycheck to paycheck. Food banks near federal facilities reported surges in demand from government workers. Some took second jobs. Some couldn't make rent. None of this was their fault — they were required by law to work, and they were not paid.

The Aviation Safety Warning

The TSA reported dramatic increases in call-outs as the shutdown extended, with sick days taken at roughly twice the normal rate. The National Air Traffic Controllers Association issued public warnings about safety implications of controllers working without pay under financial stress.

The warning was real enough that aviation safety experts took it seriously. The shutdown was creating conditions that degraded the safety infrastructure that millions of passengers relied on daily.

The Outcome

Trump signed a continuing resolution reopening the government without wall funding. The same type of bill he had refused to sign 35 days earlier. Nothing had changed in the legislative arithmetic. The shutdown had accomplished nothing except placing 800,000 federal workers in financial distress and setting a record for the longest government shutdown in American history.