•Donald Trump
US President Donald Trump has signed a federal spending bill that brings an end to the longest government shutdown in the nation’s history.
The measure, approved by the House of Representatives in a 222–209 vote just two days after a narrow Senate passage, restores funding to key federal agencies after 43 days of closure, reports AFP.
Speaking after signing the bill late yesterday, Trump framed the agreement as a political win, insisting Democrats had prolonged the impasse unnecessarily.
“They didn’t want to do it the easy way. They had to do it the hard way, and they look very bad,” he said.
The legislation funds government operations only until January 30, setting up another deadline for lawmakers to negotiate a longer-term spending plan.
As part of the agreement, Senate leaders pledged to hold an early December vote on Obamacare subsidies — a central demand of Democrats throughout the shutdown standoff.
Beyond reopening shuttered agencies, the bill provides full-year funding for the Department of Agriculture, military construction projects, and several legislative branch offices.
It also guarantees retroactive pay for all federal employees affected by the shutdown and allocates funds for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Programme (SNAP), which offers food assistance to roughly one in eight Americans.
The shutdown, which began in October, forced the suspension of numerous government services and left an estimated 1.4 million federal workers either furloughed or working without pay. The disruption also placed food aid programmes in uncertainty and caused widespread delays across domestic air travel.
With the government now reopened, attention in Washington has shifted to whether Congress and the White House can reach another agreement before the new funding expires at the end of the month.
