Longest Government Shutdown In History Ends

By Rebekah Wright

At midnight on Oct. 1, the U.S. Federal Government entered a shutdown, as lawmakers failed to pass funding bills. While not unexpected by the majority of Americans, the shutdown of the government has impacted many, including those locally. 

With the government shutdown, there were so many factors of daily life that Americans saw changed. Whether it be something grand like the Bureau of Labor Statistics releasing data late or something less frequently appreciated like the National Park visitor centers shutting doors, the shutdown shaped Americans’ lives heavily. Not only did the shutdown shift the lives of those across the country, but the connection goes deeper, with students at Einstein having felt the direct impacts. 

Senior Chloe Hick’s mother works for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), a government organization that looks at weather, which had also closed its doors as a result of the shutdown. “There’s nothing she could really do, and she didn’t want to be spending a lot of money because, obviously, her paycheck was on hold,” Hick said. The financial limitations that students have faced as a result were discussed further by Hick, saying that “this impacted my family, as my dad’s paycheck is the only one that is coming in.” 

While Hick acknowledged her fortunate scenario for having a household with a consistent paycheck, it was evident that the government shutdown affected the Einstein community heavily. 

With the continuation of the shutdown, many wondered when life would return to normal. On Nov. 5, the shutdown officially set the record for holding the title of the nation’s longest shutdown. However, times began to change as the Senate passed a bill allowing for the government to reopen on Nov. 10. 

The arrival of Nov. 12 brought great change that will be infamous in American history, with both the House passing and President Trump signing the bill, allowing for the country’s longest shutdown to end. Despite the end of this 44-day shutdown, the lasting results of the shutdown will be felt for weeks to come.